PENETRATION OF THE VIRUS OF POLIOMYELITIS FROM THE BLOOD INTO THE CEREBROSPINAL FLUID

The virus of poliomyelitis introduced into the blood may pass indirectly by way of the cerebrospinal fluid to the interstices of the central nervous organs. To reach the cerebrospinal fluid the virus must first penetrate the barrier of the choroid plexus, which operation requires time. By the inoculation test, no virus was detected in the fluid at the expiration of 48 hours, only small amounts at the expiration of 72 hours, while at the expiration of 96 hours the virus had passed more freely. The virus was still detectable in the fluid at the onset of paralysis 19 days after the intravenous injection. Pathological conditions of the leptomeninges and the cerebrospinal fluid play an important part in the pathogenesis of epidemic poliomyelitis.