(Photo by National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis/PhotoQuest/Getty Images) NEW YORK - New York health officials have issued a health alert about a case of polio in Rockland County.
They are advising healthcare providers to be vigilant for additional cases.A viral disease that can affect the nervous system and cause muscle weakness, the polio virus typically enters the body through the mouth, usually from hands contaminated with fecal matter of an infected person.
Respiratory and oral-to-oral transmission through saliva may also occur.Polio is very contagious, and a person can spread the virus even if they aren't sick.
Symptoms, which can be mild and flu-like (fatigue, fever, headache, stiffness, muscle pain, vomiting), can take up to 30 days to appear, during which time an infected individual can be shedding virus to others.