polio vaccine: Quick Facts

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Oral polio vaccine

Three line graphs display the dramatic decline in reported cases of diphtheria, polio, and measles in the United States from 1920 to 2019, each showing a sharp drop after the introduction of their respective vaccines. Diphtheria cases fell after 1921, polio after 1955, and measles after 1963, illustrating the impact of mass vaccination programs. An inset highlights an increase in measles cases after 2010.

How did the polio vaccine change the world?

Children with polio and the administration of polio vaccine

Gloved hands draw liquid from a vial into a syringe, overlaid on a digitally colored microscopic image of a virus with round particles in clusters.

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Topics

Today in History—April 12: The Press Conference That Ended Polio Salk vaccine Sabin vaccine trivalent oral poliovirus vaccine bivalent oral poliovirus vaccine monovalent oral poliovirus vaccine polio vaccine smallpox vaccine COVID-19 vaccine Gardasil Vaccine Mandates: A Timeline mRNA vaccine How Is a Vaccine Approved for Use?Can You Opt Out of School Vaccines?MMR vaccine When Did Vaccines Become Mandatory for Schools?How Do Vaccines Work?

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Key People

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Thomas Milton Rivers

American virologist