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US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are asking doctors to look for a polio-like disease that tends to peak in late summer and early fall.
Last year, the number of acute flaccid myelitis cases was the highest to date: 233 confirmed cases in 41 states. It tends to fluctuate between August and October every two years, including in 2014 and 2016, with respectively 120 and 149 cases. Until this year,
11 confirmed cases in eight states were confirmed
out of 57 patients under investigation. There have been four cases in California and one case in Maryland, Nebraska, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.
Acute flaccid myelitis is a rare but serious condition that affects the nervous system – especially the area of the spinal cord called gray matter. The CDC estimates that it affects less than one or two children in a million every year in the United States. According to the agency, there is no treatment or means to avoid it, although experts say that early treatment in physiotherapy or rehabilitation may be essential.
"The AFM is a devastating disease for patients and their families," said Dr. Anne Schuchat, deputy chief of the CDC, on Tuesday. "We know that families are facing uncertainties about their child's recovery from MFA, and we want parents to know that we keep their children at the center of our concerns and work with our partners to better understand this disease. , its risk factors and its methods of treatment, and to prevent it. "
Experts do not fully understand the long-term consequences and why some patients recover quickly, while others continue to suffer from paralysis and weaknesses that can lead to respiratory failure in severe cases.
The agency hopes that doctors will learn to quickly recognize the disease and inform the health authorities to resolve the mysteries of the AFM. According to the new report, doctors collected samples between two and seven days after the onset of limb weakness, but it took weeks for cases to be reported to the CDC.
"This delay hampers our ability to understand the causes of MFA," Dr. Tom Clark, deputy director of CDC's Viral Disease Division, told reporters on Tuesday. "We believe that it is essential to recognize the AFM at an early stage and that it can lead to better patient management."
Scientists have long thought that a virus – especially a
enterovirus
– was probably at the base of the AFM.
According to the latest CDC report, almost all patients with confirmed AFM had been sick during the month preceding the onset of paralysis, of which 92% with a fever or respiratory illness. Of the respiratory specimens collected, 44% were positive for an enterovirus or rhinovirus.
Enteroviruses are common; According to the CDC, they cause about 10 to 15 million infections a year in the United States. Although they are present all year, they are more common in summer and autumn, during which time the AFM also peaks.
Typically, enteroviruses cause cold-like symptoms such as fever, runny nose, and body aches, and recovery is easy.
It is unclear why a relatively small number of people develop paralysis after enterovirus infection. Even within the same family, many siblings may develop cold symptoms, but only one may become paralyzed.
"We monitor the trends and clinical presentation of the AFM, we conduct research to identify possible risk factors, we use advanced laboratory tests and research to understand how viral infections can lead to cancer." AFM, and we are monitoring the long-term results of AFM patients, "Clark said in a statement. statement Tuesday.
The CDC intensified their response to the disease, doubling the number of employees working for the AFM at the end of last year. This situation followed earlier criticism by parents of children with ADMs and by some of the CDC's medical advisers about the agency's slow response to the epidemic.
CDC Director Robert Redfield called for the formation of a
AFM Working Group
in November, which, he said Tuesday, brought "important contributions … helping us get closer to critical responses".
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