Polio-like disease up to nine reported cases among children in state
Dec 3, 2018, 2:09 PM
(Pexels)
(Pexels)
There are now nine confirmed cases of acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) in Washington state. Nationally, the number of cases has jumped from a few dozen to over 100.
RELATED: Bremerton mother traveling to D.C. to fight polio-like illness
AFM is a mysterious, polio-like disease that can cause paralysis, and affects mostly children. Very little is known about the illness, but the CDC is reaching out to medical centers and doctors’ offices alike to help people recognize the signs, and to study those who have it already.
So far, four patients tested positive for a similar kind of virus in their spinal fluid, which is believed the have caused their symptoms. Beyond that, a handful of cases have come on following a fever and respiratory infection. No other cases seem to have any sort of tangible link.
The CDC’s website calls AFM “a complex condition,” noting the difficulty in determining why “only some people go from having a mild respiratory illness or fever to developing AFM.” Respiratory illnesses and fevers are common in children, and most recover, making it that much harder to figure out why it can sometimes become a full-blown case of AFM.
As of Nov. 30, there have been 134 total reported case of AFM in the U.S. in 2018, with Texas reporting the most with 16, followed by Colorado with 15. Washington is tied for the fourth-most cases with 9, joining Illinois and New Jersey.
Interestingly enough, Washington has by far been hit the hardest of any state on the western region — none of Oregon, Idaho, California, or Utah have been hit by a case of AFM at all, while Nevada, Arizona, and Montana have one each.
