Five California Children With Mysterious Polio-Like Illness
Posted on February 24, 2014
Researchers have identified a cluster of a polio-like illness in five California children. The researchers say the syndrome is very, very rare. The five children experienced paralysis of one or more arms or legs. The paralysis came on suddenly and reached the height of its severity within two days of onset. Three of the children had a respiratory illness before the paralysis symptoms began. All five children had been previously vaccinated against poliovirus.
Keith Van Haren, MD, a case report author Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., says in the announcement, "Although poliovirus has been eradicated from most of the globe, other viruses can also injure the spine, leading to a polio-like syndrome. "In the past decade, newly identified strains of enterovirus have been linked to polio-like outbreaks among children in Asia and Australia. These five new cases highlight the possibility of an emerging infectious polio-like syndrome in California."
The researchers say the children still had poor limb function after six months despite treatment. Two of the children tested positive for enterovirus-68, which can cause polio-like symptoms. No cause for the paralysis was determined in the other three children. CNN reports that only 47 cases of enterovirus 68 in the U.S. since 2000.
The case report will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 66th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia.
