poliomyelitis

po·lio·my·eli·tis

noun \ˌpō-lē-(ˌ)ō-ˌmī-ə-ˈlīt-əs\

plural po·lio·my·elit·i·des \-ˈlit-ə-ˌdēz\

Definition of POLIOMYELITIS

: an acute infectious virus disease caused by the poliovirus, characterized by fever, motor paralysis, and atrophy of skeletal muscles often with permanent disability and deformity, and marked by inflammation of nerve cells in the ventral horns of the spinal cord—called also infantile paralysis, polio

—po·lio·my·elit·ic \-ˈlit-ik\ adjective