Enterovirus D68, The Virus Linked To Paralysis In Children

Oct, 2022 - By SMI

A respiratory infection that has been related to paralysis in children is on the rise, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC reports that enterovirus D68 is presently spreading throughout the United States. Enterovirus D68 instances began to increase this summer following a "long time" of a low number of cases during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which broke the story.

According to the CDC, "ongoing surveillance for EV-D68 is crucial."

The article was published just a few weeks after the CDC issued a health caution alerting medical professionals to the possibility of enterovirus D68 in patients. You should be worried about enterovirus D68, according to the information provided below.

The CDC classifies more than 100 diseases as non-polio enteroviruses, including the respiratory infection enterovirus D68. (Polio, an infectious condition that may paralyse a person, is also caused by an enterovirus.)

Acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a dangerous consequence of enterovirus D68 that often produces a mild respiratory disease like a cold and can result in paralysis, is another ailment that enterovirus D68 can cause.

According to the CDC, enterovirus and enterovirus D68 often arrive in waves and increase the number of cases every two years. Additionally, the summer and fall are the peak times for infections.

AFM is regarded as an uncommon enterovirus D68 complication, yet it occurs more frequently than most people believe. According to the CDC, an extensive enterovirus D68 epidemic in 2014 caused roughly 10% of those who contracted it to go on to develop AFM.

According to the CDC, rises in AFM cases occurred in the United States in 2014, 2016, and 2018, which also happens to be years with rising enterovirus D68 incidence.

Kids are more likely than adults to get AFM from enterovirus D68, according to Dr. Adalja. Adults can contract enterovirus D68, although they seldom develop AFM, he claims.