A fast-spreading virus related to hand-foot-and-mouth disease is hospitalizing kids across the Midwest and parts of the South and Northeast. The virus, Enterovirus D68, or EV-D68, was first discovered in 1962 in California. Until now, it has only been tied to smaller clusters of disease around the U.S. This is the first time it's caused such widespread misery, and it seems to be particularly hard on the lungs. As of Sept. 19, the CDC has confirmed 160 cases of EV-D68 in 22 states including Georgia.
What are the symptoms of D68 infection?
Most viral infections start with a runny nose and fever, but D68 doesn't seem to follow that classic pattern. Only 25% to 30% of our kids have fever, the vast majority don't. Instead, kids with D68 infections have cough and trouble breathing, sometimes with wheezing. They act like they have asthma, even if they don't have a history of it. They're just not moving air.
Why so many cases now?
The typical enterovirus season runs from July through October, so we're in an enterovirus season. What's unusual about this one is that it's a virus that hasn't widely spread through the U.S. before. If you have a new virus that has not widely circulated, most people are going to be susceptible.
The spreading of the virus coincided with the start of the new school year. Many hospitals noticed a big uptick in cases when kids went back to their classrooms. Unfortunately the outbreak may get worse before it gets better. In order for this virus to stop, it's going to have to infect enough of the population to provide immunity and eventually disappear.
Who's at greatest risk?
Recent cases have been in children ages 6 months to 16 years, with most hovering around ages 4 and 5, the CDC says. And while many kids are coming down with milder symptoms, the virus seems to be hitting children with a history of breathing problems particularly severely.
How is the infection treated?
Because it's caused by a virus, and not bacteria, antibiotics don't help. There is no vaccine to prevent it and no antiviral medication to treat it, says Andi Shane, MD, medical director of hospital epidemiology and associate director of pediatric infectious disease at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Shane says her hospital is admitting about 100 kids a week with symptoms that are consistent with D68 infections. She says the virus is treated with supportive care.
When do kids need medical attention?
Most kids who get D68 infections will have a milder course of disease and just need lots of rest and plenty of fluids.
How do you catch it?
The bad news is that enteroviruses, which are thought to cause between 10 million and 15 million infections in the U.S. each year, are pretty hardy. The "entero-" part of their name means the viruses can survive stomach acid and infect the gut, as opposed to their cousins, the rhinoviruses, which can't. These germs can live on surfaces for hours and maybe as long as a day, depending on the temperature and humidity. The virus can be found in saliva, nasal mucus, or sputum, according to the CDC. Touching a contaminated surface and then rubbing your nose or eyes is the usual way someone catches it. You can also get it from close person-to-person contact. Protect yourself with good hand-washing habits. Tell your kids to cover their mouth with a tissue when they cough. If no tissue is handy, teach them to cough into the crook of their elbow or upper sleeve instead of their hand. Common disinfectants and detergents will kill enteroviruses, so clean frequently touched surfaces like doorknobs and toys according to manufacturers' directions.
Adapted from http://www.cnn.com and http://www.webmd.com.