Paul Alexander, who spent the vast majority of the past 70 years in an iron lung after contracting polio as a child, has died aged 78.
His death was announced by his brother on Tuesday.
"It was an honour to be part of someone's life who was admired as he was," Philip Alexander wrote in a statement posted to Facebook.
"He touched and inspired millions of people and that is no exaggeration."
His family did not provide a cause of death.
However, Mr Alexander had been hospitalised in February after being diagnosed with COVID-19.
Who was the man who lived in the iron lung?
Mr Alexander contracted polio in 1952 and was paralysed from the neck down.
He was six years old when he began using an iron lung.
But that didn't limit his ambitions.
Mr Alexander earned a bachelor's degree in economics in 1978 from the University of Texas, and a law degree from the school in 1984.
He was a courtroom lawyer for 30 years and an advocate for polio vaccination.
In 2020, he published a memoir called Three Minutes for a Dog — My Life in an Iron Lung.
He wrote the book by using a stick in his mouth to type.
In March 2023, he was declared the longest surviving iron lung patient in the world by the Guinness World Records.
A few months ago, Mr Alexander set up a TikTok account answering questions about his life and the accomplishments he's achieved.
"I wrote a book and gave it to the world about me and my polio and millions of people know my name today," he said on TikTok.
"I have goals and dreams of doing some more things before I go visit some place, and I plan to do and accomplish those goals."
He's being remembered as someone who "commanded a room".
"What a flirt," his brother wrote.
"He loved good food, wine, women, long conversations, learning, and laughing."
What is polio?
According to Health Direct, some people infected with poliovirus will have flu-like symptoms including fever, fatigue, nausea, and weak or tender muscles.
These symptoms can last for up to 10 days.
Where it gets more serious is when people develop acute flaccid paralysis.
This can affect the muscles in your:
- Arms and legs
- Head and neck
- Diaphragm, which is a muscle needed for breathing
Health Direct says:
Acute flaccid paralysis can stop you from moving and breathing properly.
Severe cases of acute flaccid paralysis, where the breathing muscles become paralysed, can be fatal.
And this is where the iron lung comes into play. They were used to treat respiratory failure caused by polio.
What is an iron lung?
An iron lung is a mechanical respirator that works by using negative pressure to push air into the lungs.
It mimics the way the respiratory system works to stimulate breathing of a patient, who lies inside a metal cylinder.
A person is still able to eat and drink as their head is outside the cylinder while the rest of the body is kept inside.
How common is polio paralysis?
According to the Polio Global Eradication Initiative, polio paralysed hundreds of thousands of children every year in the 20th century.
But soon after the introduction of vaccines in the 1950s and 60s, polio was brought under control.
The last polio epidemic in Australia was in 1961-1962.
Australia began routinely vaccinating against polio in 1956.
Is polio still around?
Australia was officially declared polio-free in 2000.
According to Health Direct, polio has been eradicated in most parts of the world.
The World Health Organisation says poliovirus has only been found in Afghanistan and Pakistan (as of October 2023).
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2024-03-14 01:09:08Z
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