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TRENTON, NJ (AP) – Another young man died this month in a viral outbreak in a pediatric rehabilitation center, bringing the death toll to seven, officials said Wednesday revealing early symptoms of the disease .
Most of the people who died during the adenovirus outbreak were under the age of 18, but at least one of them was a young adult, the health department said. State. The seventh victim died Tuesday.
A total of 18 cases were recorded at the Wanaque Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation in Haskell, about 50 km northwest of New York, officials said. The for-profit facility of 227 beds includes a pediatric unit, but also occupies elderly residents.
All cases occurred in a respiratory or respiratory unit, said Dr. Shereef Elnahal, New Jersey Health Commissioner, at a press conference with Gov. Phil Murphy outside the complex.
"Our attention is squarely focused on the need to minimize other cases," said Democrat Murphy.
Health officials said they had staff on site and that the outbreak would not be declared until the center was diagnosed within four weeks.
The Commissioner stated that the first symptoms appeared on 26 September and that the state was informed of an outbreak on 9 October. Asked about jet lag, he said it was still difficult to know when a real outbreak would break out.
"It can be difficult, if not impossible, to know how the virus has arrived in the institution, what is the source or what are its specific mechanisms for spreading from one person to the other", said Elnahal. "The consequences here have been dramatic and it has been absolutely heartbreaking for families, community members, our department, myself and the governor."
Adenoviruses are common and usually cause mild cold or flu symptoms in otherwise healthy people, including sore throat, fever, coughing and sneezing. Some strains also cause diarrhea and / or pinkeye.
But the strain found in the Rehabilitation Center Epidemic, adenovirus 7, is one of the most powerful types and can sometimes cause more serious respiratory diseases, especially in people with weakened immune systems or those who suffer of pulmonary disorders.
Most children in the facility need respiratory ventilators and some have spent most of their lives there, the commissioner said. In an interview, he described the patients as "fragile". The threat is unlikely to be wider, he said.
"Unfortunately, we have hundreds of this type of outbreak each year," said the Commissioner during the interview. "Because it happened in a place where patients are so frail and have underlying problems with the immune system, you see the seriousness of the situation."
Elnahal said that a surprise inspection at the scene last weekend revealed only a gap in hand washing.
The president of a nurses' union said Wednesday that nurses have complained about the staff shortage in Wanaque, which could lead to poor infection control practices that could compromise patient safety.
"While addressing the spread of the virus, staff will continue to advocate for stronger protocols and infection control policies," union president Debbie White said in a statement.
The center asked questions to a spokesman, who had said Wednesday that he was preparing a statement.
In a statement on Wednesday, the center said its main concern was "the health and safety" of its patients, their families and their staff, and that it had "taken immediate and comprehensive steps to implement implement all infection control and prevention measures available ".
The identity of the deceased and affected patients has not been revealed.
Health officials had previously described all those infected as children. This is how the rehabilitation center describes its pediatric patients, even though its website indicates that some are even 22 years old.
In the past 10 years, there have been reports of serious illness and death due to the type of infection discovered in Wanaque in the United States, but it is unknown how many deaths occurred.
According to a scientific article cited by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a type 7 adenovirus epidemic that occurred in 1998 in a long-term care facility for children in Chicago killed eight patients.
The CDC provides technical assistance to the state health department.
The Ministry of Health inspected Wanaque in August and found "minor deficiencies" that were then corrected.
"Our goal now," said Elnahal, "is to ensure that all infection protocols are followed to minimize the impact on affected families and patients."
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Associated Press editors Lindsey Tanner in Asheville, North Carolina and Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia contributed to this report.
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This story was updated to correct the fact that not all the victims of the epidemic were children. Authorities had all previously described them as children, but now say that at least one of them was a young adult and that the center describes all of its pediatric patients as children, regardless of their age.
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