Prevalence of Poliomyelitis Among Taipei City School Children

CI Chen

1985 Vol.1 NO.6

Correspondence Author：

Abstract：

To determine the prevalence of paralytic poliomyelitis among Taipei City school children and assess risk factors for acquiring the disease, we conducted a lameness survey in Taipei City elementary and junior high schools in 1984. Fifty-one of Taipei’s 200 elementary and junior high schools were randomly selected so estimate the prevalerce of polio in children 6-15 years of age to within ±20% of the true value with 90 percent confidence. School attendance in Taipei City is high (>99%). A case of polio was defined as a child with acute onset of flaccid paralysis of an extremity with intact sensation and no history of injury or progression of symptoms in the affected limb. Lame children identified by teachers, students, and a school record review were referred for physical examination. Two age- and sex-matched classmates were selected per case to compare immunization with polio vaccine, parental educational level, and number of siblings.