A Century of Caring: The Medical Museum: University of Iowa Health Care: The Health Sciences at the University of Iowa, 1850-1950

A Century of Caring: The Health Sciences at the University of Iowa, 1850-1950: University Hospitals

Polio Years

Between the years 1948 and 1954, there were more than 10,000 cases of poliomyelitis diagnosed in the state of Iowa. Epidemics every summer left many children with chronic paralytic disease, and it was the leading cause of physical handicaps.
The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics was one of the leading centers for polio treatment and research at this time. The polio isolation ward was on First Floor West of General Hospital, and it was a center which provided care for people from all over the nation. Often as many as thirty to forty children with acute paralytic disease and from five to ten patients in respirators were placed on this ward.
The unit eventually became so crowded that all polio patients were moved to the Children's Hospital. Yet, overcrowding continued to be severe and in 1950, the Hospital admitted 560 patients to the polio ward. Within two years that number had grown by more than a hundred.

30. Young patient, 1948, courtesy of the University of Iowa Archives

31. Polio patients in physical therapy, c. 1950, courtesy of the University of Iowa Photographic Service

As a result of Jonas Salk's discovery of the polio vaccine in 1955, the high numbers of polio cases became a thing of the past. The U.S. Department of Health estimates that there are 1.6 million polio survivors.

Courtesy of Paul McCray, Jr., MD. A History of the Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, 1870-1986. Iowa City, IA: University of Iowa. 1987.; and John C. Gerber. A Pictorial History of the University of Iowa. Iowa City, IA: The University of Iowa Press. 1988.

POLIOMYELITIS: State of Iowa, 1945-1970

1945- 320
1946- 620
1947- 176
1948- 1236
1949- 1217
1950- 1399
1951- 466
1952- 3564
1953- 613
1954- 1445
1955- 561
1956- 580
1957- 21p*/57np*

1958- 35p/38np
1959- 285p/123np
1960- 6p/19np
1961- 10p/8np
1962- 4p/3np
1963- 0
1964- 1
1965- 3p/1np
1966- 0
1967- 1
1968- 1
1969- 0
1970- 0

*p - paralytic *np - non-paralytic

Statistics provided by the Iowa Department of Health

32. Training session for nurses, c. 1950, courtesy of the
University of Iowa Archives

33. Polio ward in Children's Hospital, c. 1950, courtesy
of the University of Iowa Photographic Services

Last modification date: Mon Jun 5 14:08:39 2006
URL: http://www.uihealthcare.com /depts/medmuseum/galleryexhibits/centuryofcaring/universityhospitals/06polioyears.html