Hundreds of children are now being hospitalized in at least 10 states across the country and health officials are becoming increasingly concerned that the yet identified respiratory illness can send more children into emergency rooms. Some children have also been reported two have needed intensive care.
According to state health departments, the causative agent for this respiratory disease is Enterovirus 68, which is a rare viral infection whose initial symptoms include coughing, wheezing, and hypoxemia or decreased oxygen levels in the blood. For children who are already suffering from respiratory problems such as asthma, the symptoms of the virus can be more severe and could require them to receive a more urgent care.
Before this recent outbreak, Enterovirus 68 was only associated with occasional cases of infection, although there have been reports of similar outbreaks in the states of Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Georgia between 2008 and 2010. At the moment, Missouri and Illinois have already confirmed that a significant number of children have already been hospitalized due to Enterovirus 68, however, children with a very similar symptoms are also receiving treatment in Georgia, Kansas, Colorado, Iowa, North Carolina, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Ohio. Health officials in the state still have to confirm whether or not the same virus is responsible for these illnesses.
Enterovirus 68 is part of a group of viruses that normally affect humans. Many health experts believe that this outbreak was spread by a method similar to that of the common cold. With school already starting for most children in the country, it is likely that the virus was spread through coughing, sneezing, your real contamination, or contact dissemination. Experts are also saying that because there is still not much that is known about the virus, it could potentially be more contagious that they initially thought. Scientist Rafal Toarz said, "We speculate that this virus has sort of evolved into different subtypes and has allowed it to become more prevailing worldwide. Maybe it has mutated into something that is more easily transmissible, I don't know if that is the case but it's certainly possible."