Last year, a nationwide outbreak of a respiratory virus has sent many children to the hospital. Despite the decline in cases and the infection subsiding, a frightening mystery engulfed researchers - what caused the paralysis of the victims even after they had fully recovered?
In August 2014, the outbreak of Enterovirus has started and in the long run, a total of 103 children from 34 states had an unexplained paralysis of one arm or one leg. The paralysis can be compared to that of polio. Every week, three new cases of acute flaccid myelitis are being reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Ironically, out of the 103 cases of paralysis, only one child has recovered. CDC confirms this data and they created a probe on this matter. They are investigating whether the limb weakness is linked to the Enterovirus-D68 (EV-D68) that caused severe respiratory illness. Generally, there were 1,153 cases of EV-D68 from August 2014 to January 8, 2015.
CDC said a test of cerebrospinal fluid in 71 patients with paralysis or limb weakness revealed that they did not get the virus or any other pathogen. However, after being tested for EV-D68, the results were positive. All the patients were hospitalized during the outbreak of the disease.
According to Dr. Samuel Dominguez, epidemiologist and an infectious disease specialist at Children's Hospital Colorado, "It's unsatisfying to have an illness and not know what caused it."
Health experts are pursuing various theories but still to no avail. Further investigation and research are needed to identify the cause of this condition
Enterovirus D68 )EV-D68) is one of more than 100 non-polio enteroviruses. Symptoms include fever, runny nose, sneezing, cough and muscle aches. Severe symptoms include wheezing and respiratory distress. In the United States, different types of enteroviruses are common through the years. In 2014, the number of cases had increased compared to that of the previous years. Children and infants are most likely to contract the enteroviruss.