Eighth child dies at a rehabilitation center in New Jersey

An eighth child died Friday afternoon as a result of a one – month adenovirus epidemic in a New Jersey rehabilitation center, the health department said. State.

The child, already frail and suffering from a respiratory disease, has not been confirmed as having a common infection, health officials said. They are waiting for the results of the test.

According to the Ministry of Health, seven more children died and another sixteen survivors contracted an adenovirus while they were being treated at the Wanaque Nursing Home Rehabilitation Center in Haskell.

"To date, confirmed cases have become ill between September 26 and October 22," according to a statement from the Department of Health.

"The facility has agreed to stop new admissions for the duration of the outbreak," the department said. "It is an active investigation into an adenovirus epidemic, so it is possible that laboratory tests are confirming new cases."

In a statement from the Ministry of Health, the children concerned were described as "medically fragile children whose immune system was seriously compromised".

According to the New Jersey Department, the US Centers for Disease Control assisted state health officials in testing and "expertise".

The adenovirus is mild and looks like a cold or flu, experts say. But it can be fatal in frail people and those with weakened immune systems. It can survive on plastic and metal surfaces and spread through routine personal contact, including handshakes.