10 children diagnosed with a rare disease resembling polio in Illinois

Ten children in Illinois have now been diagnosed with acute flaccid myelitis, a rare, polio-like illness in Illinois.

Health officials said all cases had been reported in northern Illinois and that at least two of the children had been treated at Lurie Children's Hospital. A 2-year-old Batavia child spent several weeks at the hospital and is currently in a rehab center.

This disease attacks the nervous system and can result in weakness of the arms or legs and loss of muscle reflexes. It has received increased attention in recent weeks after health officials in Minnesota and Colorado saw an upsurge in reported cases, said the spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Public Health. , Melaney Arnold.

The cases reported in Illinois are preliminary diagnoses and only the US Centers for Disease Control can confirm the diagnosis, according to Arnold. Until then, doctors treat the cases as if it 's AFM.

"The CDC indicated that there may be an increase in the number of cases and, in mid-September, we advised health care providers to be vigilant and report back to the Department of Health. so we can pass the information to the CDC, "said Arnold.

Between August 2014 and August 2018, the CDC received information on a total of 362 confirmed cases of AFM nationwide. According to the CDC, the largest number of cases, about 50, were reported in September 2014 before falling to one digit in the following months. The number increased again to about 45 in September 2016. About 15 cases were reported in August 2018.

The agency said it did not confirm the cause of the majority of cases, which mainly involved children. However, it recommends taking preventive measures, including keeping up-to-date vaccines and protecting against mosquito bites.

Dr. Tina Tan, an infectious disease specialist who has treated one of the children treated for this disease, said the best advice for parents is to be alert and consider the symptoms.

"If their child gets an enteroviral infection, he should look for symptoms such as the sudden onset of weakness of the arms and legs, difficulty in swallowing. Sometimes the speech is scrambled, "Tan said.