House Call Needed?
Topic # 104
Acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM, is a polio-like disease. Today’s post will shed some light the virus responsible for causing it.
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“Paging Dr. House,” might echo in the backs of the minds of healthcare providers and parents when a child presents troubling symptoms caused by a novel pathogen. One such culprit emerged in 2014, and remains difficult to diagnose due to its relative obscurity and ability to mutate. It is a strain of enterovirus, which normally causes only routine cold symptoms. However, the D68 strain can cause paralysis, particularly in children. Because it can be so devastating, communities should be made aware of it. It should be readily identified and studied, so that a cure can be discovered.
D68 is on the rise. Wastewater has shown this. Most infected will not need medical care but paralysis, or acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), is one side effect that can strike children particularly hard. Currently, there is no cure for the debilitating disease, and treatment is only palliative. However, Dr. Buddy Creech, a pediatric infectious disease physician at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville and his team, are working to change that1.
While they strive to do so, you can make a difference, too. You can watch out for a cold that progresses to muscular issues whether it affects you or someone you know. Be particularly vigilant for the signs and symptoms in children. Seek medical attention immediately. Ask the physician to run tests to rule an AFM diagnosis out or in because paralysis occurs in hours. Additionally, at your next routine physical, talk to you healthcare provider to ensure they are aware of D68 and AFM.
Awareness can make a difference. Data will grow. More scientists will study them. Knowledge, then, could be widely shared. Once scientists like Creech’s have such data, they could find treatments and cures for the D68 enterovirus and acute flaccid myelitis.
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