Testing & Diagnosis for Poliomyelitis in Children
How does a doctor know that it's poliomyelitis?
In addition to a complete medical history and physical exam, your doctor may want to run a few tests including:
- Cultures (of the throat, urine, and stool)
- Lumbar puncture (spinal tap)
- a special needle is placed into the lower back, into the spinal canal
- measures the pressure in the spinal canal and brain
- a small amount of cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) can be removed and sent for testing to determine if there is an infection or other problems
- not be recommended if your child is very ill