Unconditional Surrender

[Music] [Applause] these are the proud Hills of the state of Virginia in the springtime of 1956 springtime beckoning to a small boy urging him to wander with the wind to the farm perhaps over the pasture fence to catch a calf not an easy thing because after all a calf's a youngster like himself ride him sure well what's a day without a little rough and tumble when a boy needs comfort there's always home and mother and father this is the world of randy kerr of Oakton Virginia typical except for one thing randy was the first child to receive an injection of salt polio vaccine in the field trials in 1954 much however had preceded this moment when Randy Kerr made history in the all-out fight against polio led by the National Foundation for infantile paralysis there were many years of struggle and heartbreak parents lived in fear of polio sudden attack and the tragic aftermath thousands upon thousands of children and adults fell prey to the Crippler March of Dimes funds were needed everywhere needed desperately by patients needed by an army of scientists who searched for a preventive then in 1954 a vaccine to prevent paralytic polio developed by dr. Jonas Salk a grantee of the National Foundation was tested in the largest field trials in medical history finally April 12 1955 Salk vaccine safe effective the next challenge commercial production of the polio vaccine in quantity a huge task a complex process all detailed in this book it's officially called a protocol here the manufacturer records every step in the production of one lot of vaccine the first requirement trained scientists and technicians there every action is important starting with the scrub up and the equipment they use gets its scrub up to a scalding steam bath for 15 minutes when it comes out it's completely sterilized ready for the big job ahead vital to the production of the vaccine our monkeys from the Far East given the best of care meanwhile another basic ingredient of the polio vaccine is being prepared a rich nourishing liquid called medium $1.99 some 68 different elements go into medium $1.99 each is carefully checked weighed and combined according to the formula and when all is thoroughly blended the medium is tested for absolute sterility why this elaborate preparation into medium $1.99 will go monkey kidney tissue first carefully minced my head [Music] in these bottles the monkey kidney tissue grows getting its nourishment from the rich medium $1.99 for six days the bottled Rock and the tissue grows then because all the nourishment in the medium is exhausted half is siphoned off to be replaced by fresh medium but with a difference the difference a big one is that here for the first time live poliovirus is planted in the medium three different strains of poliovirus are added the completed vaccine will protect against all three types of paralytic polio [Music] and once more the bottles rock in four days the virus so minut yet so lethal multiplies 250 to 1000 times another stage in the complex production of vaccine has been reached the poliovirus solution is ready for harvesting the endless testing has now begun a titration test it measures the amount of live virus present in the solution this test is made seven different times during production next filtration a vitally important process first the virus solution goes through these metal tubes containing porcelain filters then through sheets of asbestos to strain out all kidney tissue and remove any stray bacteria more tests rabbits are inoculated to make sure that no B virus a dangerous but non polio virus is in the solutions guinea pigs to receive injections to make certain that the solutions are free of tuberculosis bacilli finally the climax of production in activation the power of the polio virus to infect man will be utterly destroyed the colorless pungent chemical formaldehyde will deal the deadly blow to the poliovirus for 66 hours in a warm incubator room the inactivation process continues then what remains can only do good provide humans with protection from paralytic polio a chapter ends the enemy of man is now ready to become his servant [Music] at every step of the way checks and double-checks this technician is working on a tissue culture safety test double check on the complete inactivation of the virus for such tissue culture tests are conducted on every batch of vaccine behind this door the final phase of production it calls for a giant tank into it will go the three types of inactivated polio virus solution combined here for the first time the solutions are first filtered on the way into the pooling tank and twice later additional chemicals complete and preserve the vaccine then the preparation is mixed for five hours at the end of that time the polio myelitis vaccine is complete but testing is not to animal tests are performed one on white mice injected with vaccine is called the LCM test and the live monkey potency test monkeys receive polio myelitis vaccine then are observed and examined to be sure the vaccine is potent enough to cause formation of polio fighting antibodies in humans more tests a sterility test the sixth of its kind is performed it takes time and infinite care only vaccine found completely free of bacteria is approved for the next step that step is putting vaccine into bottles under completely sterile conditions [Music] these are the bottles which finally will find their way to doctors offices and clinics all over the country even as they reach the end of the production line other tests are in progress and samples are sent to the government [Music] no vaccine can leave the pharmaceutical house until all tests by the manufacturer and the government are completed satisfactorily the protocol is finished then sent to the National Institutes of Health for government approval required by law in Bethesda Maryland the National Institutes of Health is a vast center of medical progress the main research arm of the United States Public Health Service in the office of dr. Roderick Murray chief of the division of biologic standards the manufacturers protocol is first reviewed then dr. Murray summons two scientists from his staff each is given a copy of the protocol which he will study carefully checking every process every test for consistency at the same time another vital judgment is being made in the laboratories of the National Institutes of Health here a sample from every batch of vaccine is received [Music] then subjected to a whole battery of complex scientific tests a sterility test confirming those of the manufacturer is carried out a tissue culture test on the vaccine sample again substantiating tests already made by the manufacturer living tissue is inoculated with polio myelitis vaccine incubated then carefully examined the monkey test one of the most important tests 20 monkeys are involved in the testing of every lot of vaccine and each receives 3 injections from the manufacturers sample the purpose once again to confirm the safety and effectiveness of the polio vaccine these are just some of the painstaking review and testing procedures of the National Institutes of Health each contributing to the final judgment and recommendation on every lot of vaccine once the Public Health Service authorizes its release the polio vaccine can begin to protect American youngster [Music] in 1955 over 10 million children received one or more injections of salt vaccine including this boy the president's own grandson David Eisenhower and now like millions of boys and girls across the nation David too is protected against paralytic polio free to play and enjoy the delights of summertime with the president his grandfather from the United States Public Health Service a report on these vaccinations in 1935 by the distinguished former Surgeon General dr. Leonard a chilly as we enter the second year of wide-scale use the Salk polio vaccine it's my very pleasant duty to report to you the results of polio vaccinations today public ulcerous findings on the effectiveness of vaccine add up to good news indeed we had an especially good opportunity to study effectiveness last year here is a very simple chart which indicates how the vaccine work during 1955 is based on reports from 22 states in New York City among vaccinated children as you can see the attack rate for paralytic polio was only six point three hundred thousand while among the unvaccinated the attack rate was twenty nine point two four hundred thousand almost four times as high the studies involved about even one-half million children whose ages range from five to eleven years even though most of the vaccinated children have only one injection instead of the full dosage of three the vaccine was found to be about 78 percent effective but in another way the boys and girls who received at least one injection a vaccine had about four times as much protection as those without it we can all be proud of the Salk vaccine brought about by American scientists American giving we can all share in the hope this victory will lead to many more in the years ahead for maximum protection from paralytic polio three inoculations the second given not less than two weeks after the first the third not less than seven months later your child or any member of your family eligible for polio vaccine in your community should be vaccinated now vaccination now will save lives from death or paralysis this year make use of increasing supplies of vaccine help your child grow up strong and straight free from crippling polio youngsters like David Eisenhower like polio pioneer Randy Kurt are part of a bright new future a future which will see the unconditional surrender of infantile paralysis American homes and homes everywhere safe at last safe from the terrible invasion of polio [Music]