Episode 265: The Cutter incident - part three

About this episode

This episode discusses the Cutter incident and its impact on polio vaccination efforts.

It would start with a headache, a fever, maybe a funny tummy. But soon enough your knee would give out, or your arm would hang limp, or you would struggle to breathe. You'd be taken to the hospital, where you'd get your diagnosis - polio. If you survived, you ran the risk of doing so with paralyzed limbs, struggling to walk on bulky leg braces. Your parents would be terrified they might lose you, and so everybody wanted the one thing that could stop all of this - a vaccine. Videos: New England Journal of Medicine: The Cutter Incident, 50 Years Later American Experience: The Polio Crusade The Iron Lung and Polio by M.Rockoff | OPENPediatrics Articles and books: Polio: An American Story , by David M. Oshinsky The Cutter Incident, by Dr. Paul Offit NEJM: The Cutter Incident

People in this episode

Host: Jennifer Matarese

Topics covered

• polio
• vaccination
• public health
• medical history
• childhood diseases

Keywords

• Cutter incident
• polio
• vaccine
• public health
• medical history

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: New England Journal of Medicine, American Experience

Products: The Iron Lung

Books & works: Polio: An American Story, The Cutter Incident

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