CDC issues warning about that can lead to paralysis in children
by LIZ BONIS | WKRC
Wednesday, September 14th 2022
FILE - Doctors are asking parents to be on the lookout for some common symptoms seen in children this time of year that get worse instead of better. (WKRC)
CINCINNATI (WKRC) — Doctors are asking parents to be on the lookout for some common symptoms seen in children this time of year that get worse instead of better.
FILE - Doctors are asking parents to be on the lookout for some common symptoms seen in children this time of year that get worse instead of better. (WKRC)
It has to do with a new warning from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about a rare condition that can lead to paralysis.
Health care providers said they want to alert but not alarm the public when it comes to this warning about respiratory viruses.
Rhinoviruses and enteroviruses are two viruses that are indistinguishable when you test for them," said Dr. Elizabeth Schlaudecker, who is a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Cincinnati Children's Hospital.
Those who do test for them usually associate them with the common cold and some GI bugs.
This year, however, the CDC issued the alert because they have seen a higher proportion compared to previous years of what's called enterovirus D68 (EV-D68). It's been associated with more severe respiratory illness and a complication known as acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM.
It generally starts by causing weakness in a child's arms or legs and can lead to permanent paralysis and be life-threatening.
They generally stop moving one of their limbs, or they are having difficulty doing their normal tasks," Schlaudecker said.
Schlaudecker is part of a national surveillance team that tracks these types of illnesses in children. She said this can appear in all ages, but the average age reported so far is about 3.
She also said most kids do recover from EV-D68 with no treatment
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