The word "poliomyelitis," a disease caused by the poliovirus, can be a tricky one to spell. In IPA phonetic transcription, it is pronounced /ˌpɒli.oʊˌmaɪəˈlaɪtɪs/. The "-itis" ending indicates inflammation, while "polio" refers to the grey matter of the spinal cord, which is often affected by the virus. The spelling can be broken down into "polio-" + "myeli-" (meaning spinal cord) + "-itis." Though it may be a challenging word to spell, it's important to know how to spell and say the word to recognize the significance of this debilitating disease.
Poliomyelitis, commonly known as polio, is a highly contagious viral infection that primarily affects the nervous system. It is caused by one of three types of poliovirus: type 1, type 2, or type 3. Poliomyelitis is transmitted through person-to-person contact, mainly through the fecal-oral route. The virus enters the body through the mouth, multiplies in the intestine, and can then spread to the nervous system by invading the bloodstream.
The infection can result in a range of symptoms, from mild to severe. While most individuals infected with the poliovirus do not display any symptoms, some may suffer from flu-like symptoms such as fever, sore throat, headache, fatigue, and nausea. In a small number of cases, the virus can invade the central nervous system, causing muscle weakness, paralysis, and in extreme situations, death.
Poliomyelitis has been a major public health concern globally. However, widespread immunization efforts through the administration of polio vaccines have led to a significant decline in polio cases worldwide. Vaccination has played a crucial role in reducing poliomyelitis, offering protection against all three poliovirus types and effectively preventing transmission of the virus.
Efforts to eradicate poliovirus completely continue as it remains endemic in a few countries. Through comprehensive vaccination campaigns, surveillance, and containment strategies, global health organizations aim to eliminate this disease entirely, ensuring a polio-free world.
Inflammation of the gray matter of the spinal cord.
A practical medical dictionary. By Stedman, Thomas Lathrop. Published 1920.
* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.
The word "poliomyelitis" is derived from Greek. "Poliós" means gray, referring to the gray matter of the spinal cord, while "myelós" means marrow or spinal cord. The suffix "-itis" is derived from the Greek word "ī́tis", which means inflammation. Thus, "poliomyelitis" translates to "inflammation of the gray matter of the spinal cord".