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Postpolio syndrome (PPS) refers to a constellation of neuromuscular and orthopedic symptoms and signs that have been noted to occur in patients with remote antecedent poliomyelitis. It has been increasingly recognized that individuals recovering from acute poliomyelitis develop new symptoms, most commonly weakness, fatigue, and pain that develops decades after initial disease in the region previously affected. Associated symptoms may include dysphagia, respiratory insufficiency, new muscular atrophy, dysarthria, muscle cramps, fasciculations, sleep abnormalities, and cold intolerance. Although the concepts of PPS was first described in the late 1800s, it was not until nearly 100 years later that the concept of PPS was more widely recognized and defined. This was due largely to the polio epidemic of the 1940s and 1950s that left many survivors in the world. The virtual epidemic of PPS that occurred among these polio survivors in the 1980s and 1990s has served as a catalyst to attract medical attention to this syndrome.
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