This research article examines the results of the study conducted by its author on the representation of philatelic materials, in all their diversity, dedicated to the issue of poliomyelitis vaccinations, both oral and injectable. All illustrative materials presented in this article are presented in the form of 113 screenshot copies, supplied with short explanatory comments to them.   

Purpose of the article   

The purpose of writing this research, author's article is to present and describe various philatelic, thematic materials found by the author on the Internet as a result of the search work, directly related to both the disease itself - poliomyelitis, vaccinations against it and the history of their invention, and the presentation of different types of vaccinations against poliomyelitis, both oral and injection forms, as well as the heroes of the fight against it - scientists and doctors - Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin. Also, charitable organizations are presented that finance both the production and the process of delivery and practical use of the polio vaccine in a number of poor countries of the world. This is, first of all, the world organization Rotary / Rotary, which sponsored and finances, to this day, issues of numerous philatelic materials dedicated to poliomyelitis and the fight against it, first of all, a large philatelic collection, the series "STOP-POLIO".

Hypothesis of the article

During the preparation for this study, and the receipt of the collection philatelic materials used for writing the subsequent research article, its author put forward a working hypothesis that in the means of world philately, there may be a fairly large number of philatelic miniatures, which reflect various subjects, which depict both the scientists-researchers themselves, who created vaccines against poliomyelitis, and were engaged in the fight against this formidable infectious disease, and materials reflecting on them, both children and adults who suffered from poliomyelitis and its complications, the process of using various types of vaccines.

Method and materials of the study

In conducting this thematic research, its author actively used the method of literary-critical analysis on the problem under study. For this purpose, special collection sites and Internet pages of philatelists, numismatists and phalerists-collectors collecting postage stamps and envelopes were carefully studied, both on medical topics in general and on infectious diseases, epidemiology, and the history of medicine, in particular. All thematic philatelic materials found on the Internet were sorted, grouped, and also converted by the author of this study using a special computer program into their screenshot copies, both black and white and color. These screenshot copies were used by the author of the article, later, as thematic illustrations, accompanied in the text of the research article by brief, accompanying comments.

The study of any issues related to all areas of medical science, its history and heroes of medicine is always a relevant and popular issue! This directly concerns the issue of studying such a formidable infectious disease as poliomyelitis, with its serious complications, as well as the history of the creation of oral and injection vaccines, both for its prevention and treatment. A special place is occupied by the memory of the creators of these vaccines, two American virologists - Yoanas Salk and Albert Sabin. The author of this research article tried to reflect all these important issues, using such a non-standard, creative, innovative method as illustration, in addition to the text part of this article, all screenshot copies found on the Internet, such means of collecting as philately (various postage stamps, envelopes and postal blocks). This research article presents such important points as text and illustrative information dedicated to the polio virus itself and what it looks like, as well as information about vaccinations against it, such as oral, drops and pills, created by the American virologist, Dr. Albert Sabin, born in Bialystok (Poland), which was part of the Russian Empire at that time, and an injectable form created by the American virologist, Jonas Salk [3]. On all philatelic miniatures, the oral form of the vaccine has in its plot an image of a drop or pill, and on postal miniatures dedicated to the injectable form of the vaccine, a plot with an image of the injectable form of vaccination.  Beginning my story about the creation of polio vaccinations and their practical application, I would like to present the philatelic miniatures found as a result of a preliminary search and selection of collectible philatelic materials – 5 screenshot copies, on the front side of which the polio virus is depicted directly. It should be said that there are not very many of them, and all the images found by the author of this article are presented in Figure 1 [1, 2, 54]. 

Figure 1. Image of the polio virus in philatelic media

As it was said above, the materials of this article are a logical continuation of the first research article written by the author earlier on the issue of poliomyelitis reflection, vaccinations against it, and the heroes-creators of injectable and oral forms of these vaccinations. 

This article will present a fairly large volume of philatelic materials - postage stamps of different countries of the world, such as: Mexico (1964, 2005); Vietnam; Kenya (2005); Nigeria (Series -STOP POLIO); Laos (1984); Yemen; Mali (1982, 1992 - Pjnfhb); Egypt (1984); Ghana; Bolivia (Series -STOP POLIO); Ethiopia (Series -STOP POLIO); India (1987) - Rotary; Tanzania (1999) - Rotary; Canada; Angola; Bahrain (1965, 2000); Thailand (1990) – Rotary; Lebanon (2017); Botswana (1985) - (Series – STOP POLIO); Japan-Pakistan (2004); Nepal (1994); New Caledonia (1988) – Rotary; Guatemala (2005) – Rotary; Peru (1988) – Rotary; Cuba (1973); Sudan; Iran (1987, 1997); Brazil (1983); Nigeria (1984) - (Series – STOP POLIO); Madagascar (1981) - (Series –STOP POLIO); Bangladesh; Kenya – Rotary [50]; Central African Republic (2020) - Rotary; Togolese Republic (2018) – Rotary; Republic of Chad (2020) - Rotary; Republic of Burundi (2020) - Rotary; Republic of Guinea-Bissau (2019); Brazil (2022); Honduras (2005) - Rotary; Republic of Guinea (2013) - Rotary; Tanzania; Indonesia (1996); Venezuela, dedicated to poliomyelitis, vaccinations against it and complications in children, with subsequent orthopedic care for them. 

At the beginning, in Figure 1, a collection of 60 screenshot copies will be presented, dedicated to the active use in children of the oral form of the polio vaccine, in the form of drops and dragees [2-33, 50-56, 59, 60, 62-66]. 

Figure 2. A selection of postage stamps dedicated to the use of oral polio vaccinations 

Figure 3 shows a thematic selection of envelopes, both first day and artistic stamped envelopes – 22 screenshot copies from different countries of the world, with an image on the front of them of the practical use of the oral polio vaccine in children. These are envelopes from such countries as: India (1987, 2004, 2005, 2014) [34-36, 45, 46, 47]; Angola (2004); Laos (1984) [37]; Venezuela (1988) [38]; South Africa (2005) [39]; Peru (1988) [40]; Mexico (1984, 2005) [41, 47]; Mali (1982) [42]; New Caledonia (1988) [43]; Cuba (1988) [44]; maximum card Botswana (1985) [48], Ghana [49]; Macau (2022) [62]; Argentina (1956, 63) [69, 70]. 

Figure 3. Postal envelopes and maximum cards dedicated to oral polio vaccination 

Figure 3 shows a selection of 25 thematic philatelic materials dedicated to the injection type of vaccination against poliomyelitis, both for children and adult patients [51-55, 57, 58, 66, 67]. 

Figure 4. Philatelic collection dedicated to the injectable form of the polio vaccine

This concludes another author's research article, which is thematically devoted to polio vaccines - oral, created by Dr. Albert Sabin, and injection, created by Dr. Jonas Salk. The author is preparing another research article for publication. dedicated to complications after poliomyelitis, both in children and adults, and their rehabilitation means, using a number of orthopedic means. 

Conclusions 

1. The author of this research, thematic article, managed to present the topic he studied, both the text and illustrative parts, in a fairly complete manner. 

2. This research article presents such an important section of collecting as philately in the form of screenshot copies, with their general presentation in the article, in the form of 113 copies of screenshot copies. 

3. The use by the author of this research article, in the form of accompanying illustrations to the text part of the article, screenshot copies of the collection materials he found, is an innovative, exceptional innovation in the design of research articles of this kind. 

4. These research materials, presented by their author in this article, may be of interest to both the medical community and numerous collectors in its various areas of collection tools and, first of all, those involved in medical topics. 

5. The author of this article managed to fully achieve the goal of his research and confirm the research hypothesis he put forward.