CDC confirms 10 new cases of polio-like illness



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CHARLOTTE, NC – There is new information about this mysterious, paralyzing disease that has been confirmed here in the Carolinas.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed 10 additional cases of acute flaccid myelitis (AFM).

The total number of cases this year is now 72 with 119 other possible cases on which investigation, according to the CDC.

"So she fell down and kept trying to walk, but she was going to fall," said Nicole Daw.

"As a parent, what's going on in your head?" asked Xavier Walton of NBC Charlotte.

"It was terrifying," Daw said. "I had no idea what was going on."

It was a similar story for the little Abigail in Atlanta.

"She woke up in the middle of the night and her left arm was completely paralyzed," said Erica Palacio, Abigail's mother. "She could not move at all."

AFM is a polio-like disease and, for the moment, is getting worse. Doctors have stated that the AFM only affects a few members at a time and that children often, but not always, heal.

McKenzie Anderson is now 10 years old. She is quadriplegic and needs a machine to breathe.

"Without my fan, I would not be talking," McKenzie Anderson said.

Four years ago, her mother said that it all started with a cold. Then his first grader is a stiff neck complaint. In two weeks, McKenzie's legs have stopped working. By the time the doctors understood that it was the AFM, his fate had been sealed.

"I feel that it's ignorant," said Angie Anderson, McKenzie's mother. "The medical facilities, the places do not know it yet."

So now, they are raising awareness and pushing parents to have their children tested for AFM – even if a child has a cold.

"A child, that's too much," said Angie. "It's just crazy."

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