After corona infection

70 years in the iron lung: “Polio Paul died

Paul Alexander never lost the courage to face life and inspired many people.

(Bild: Screenshot gofundme.com)

Sad news from Dallas in the state of Texas: Paul Alexander, who contracted polio as a child and had to spend almost his entire life in the iron lung, has died at the age of 78. He was probably the last person to use this device. The man had contracted coronavirus before his death.

Alexander is believed to have died on March 11. He became famous as "Polio Paul" because he never lost his will to live despite his state of health. On his donation page on GofundMe, his brother Philip expressed his gratitude for the financial donations that had enabled the extraordinary man to live a stress-free life in his final years: "It's absolutely incredible to read all the comments and to know that so many people have been inspired by Paul. I am just so grateful," explained the relative. 

A few weeks ago, it was announced on social media that Alexander had been admitted to hospital following an infection with coronavirus. However, he is said to have been discharged home afterwards. However, the exact cause of his death was not disclosed. 

Negative pressure sucks air into the body
Alexander gained international fame after he was paralyzed from the neck down following a polio infection and had to live in his iron lung for decades. His whole body except for his head was stuck in the device - the alternating negative and positive pressure in the cabin sucks air into the lungs and pushes it out again, taking over the function of the paralyzed respiratory muscles.

Paul Alexander never lost the courage to face life and inspired many people.

(Bild: Screenshot gofundme.com)

Despite his difficult situation, the American did not let it stop him from studying, working as a lawyer and writing a book. He was able to paint and write with his mouth - most recently he was also active on social media, telling millions of interested people about his everyday life in the hundreds of kilos heavy device. 

Alexander developed snap breathing for exits
Some people didn't think Alexander would make it this far when, as a six-year-old in the 1950s, he ended up in the iron lung after an emergency operation. The viral disease had left the boy severely scarred - he was paralyzed from the neck down. Most polio patients who were put into the machine were able to leave it again after their recovery - but Alexander was dependent on the machine for the rest of his life. However, he learned to be able to leave it, at least temporarily. He was able to do this using a special breathing technique that resembles gasping.

Poliomyelitis, also known as polio, is a viral disease that affected 13,000 children in Austria alone between 1946 and 1961. Around 1500 died in this country after infection. It was only when a vaccine was developed in the late 1950s that the disease was largely contained.