Enterovirus D68, which has been spreading rapidly across the nation causing mild to severe respiratory illnesses, is now under investigation for a possible link to several cases of paralysis in children.
On Sept. 26, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an alert about the investigation and encouraged clinicians to report any cases of acute onset of limb weakness and an MRI showing a spinal cord lesion largely restricted to the gray matter.
In an interview Sept. 30, Dr. Daniel Feikin, the epidemiology branch chief at the division of viral diseases at the CDC, shared what’s known so far about EV-D68, talked about the ongoing investigation into the link with pediatric paralysis cases, and provided clinical advice to clinicians.