Question: I had polio at age 5 and am now 76. I have weakness in all four limbs. My legs have been week for a long time while my arms and shoulders started getting weaker 2-3 years ago. I cannot lift my left arm past my shoulder. My right arm is better but not good. The PT here at the retirement home we are in suggests that I do strengthening exercises for my shoulders and scapula. I wonder about that since all four limbs are weak. I have a walker and a power wheelchair, though they urge me to use the walker rather than the wheelchair. I wonder if that’s the best advice.
Answer: It is never easy to know if later-life new weakness in a polio survivor is from PPS or from other common age-related problems such as shoulder tendonitis/bursitis that leads to restricted shoulder movement and weakness. Since your arm/upper limb weakness is quite recent, I would recommend you be evaluated for physical therapy (or other) treatments for the shoulder to restore good passive movement and for strengthening exercises. If guidelines for gentle (non-vigorous) strengthening exercises are followed, there is no risk of damage and some benefit is likely. You may wish to read and show your therapist the Position Statement by PHI on Exercise for Polio Survivors (www.post-polio.org/edu/pphnews/pph19-2a.html).
Regarding the issue of using your walker versus your power wheelchair for daily mobility, this strictly depends on how far and how often you walk, as well as how effortful and how safe it is for you to walk with the walker. Certainly, it benefits general health to continue to do at least some upright weight-bearing walking for as long as possible, assuming it can be done without undue risk of falling or of straining shoulders/arms/hands. An excellent resource for you to read about preserving strength and function in the shoulders is a 30-page booklet titled “SOS—Save Our Shoulders: A Guide for Polio Survivors” authored by Kuehl, Costello and Wechsler and which is available on Polio Place (www.polioplace.org/sites/default/files/files/Save-Our-Shoulders.pdf).
Post-Polio Health (Vol. 34, No. 4, Fall 2018)