Rare Virus Sickens Thousands of Kids in Midwest

A respiratory virus has sickened thousands of kids in the Midwest and Southeast. The culprit is thought to be Enterovirus D68 (EV-D68), which was first identified in 1962 but has remained rare since that time.

In the current outbreak, kids have come down with cold-like symptoms—such as a runny nose and coughing—but many cases have become severe, with some kids needing to be put on ventilators and some losing consciousness. Several thousands kids have become ill, and hundreds hospitalized, according to news reports.

One hospital in Kansas City, Mo., has treated nearly 500 kids since the beginning of August, and sent material from parients to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for analysis. A total of 19 of the samples were positively identified as EV-D68, and doctors think the same virus may be the cause of the similar cases throughout the region.

In about 15 percent of the cases, “illnesses have resulted in children being placed in an intensive care unit,” according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. Most enteroviruses do not hospitalize such a high percentage of patients.

"It's worse in terms of scope of critically ill children who require intensive care,” Dr. Mary Anne Jackson, a director for infectious diseases at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, told CNN. “I would call it unprecedented. I've practiced for 30 years in pediatrics, and I've never seen anything quite like this.”

Kids under the age of five and those with asthma are most at risk of getting and being hospitalized with the virus.

Some facilities, like Blessing Hospital in Quincy, Ill., are restricting kids under the age of 12 from visiting patients, to prevent spreading the bug.  

The CDC noted that enteroviruses are common, with more than 100 types causing about 10 to 15 million infections in the United States per year. The viruses can cause symptoms similar to a common cold, and often strike in summer, peaking in August and September as schools start back up.

Hundreds of cases with symptoms similar to those reported in Missouri have cropped up in Illinois, Ohio, Colorado and elsewhere. These and seven other states, mostly in the Midwest, have appealed to the CDC for help in identifying and managing the outbreak.

The good news is that these types of viruses usually aren’t deadly; with proper treatment, such as fluids and rest, people with the virus should get better, said William Schaffner, head of the Department of Preventive Medicine at Vanderbilt University.