9th Child Dies Of Adenovirus Outbreak At Wanaque Center

PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ — A ninth child with respiratory illness at the Wanaque Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation has died following an andenovirus outbreak there, state officials announced.

The state Department of Health (DOH) confirmed that the child died of the adenorvirus that killed seven other children at the facility since the illness was first detected there Sept. 26. The DOH could not confirm the death of the other child was due to the adenovirus, officials said.

The total number of confirmed cases of residents infected with the adneovirus is at 25 now.

All nine children who died were "medically fragile" with compromised immune systems and became ill between Sept. 26 and Oct. 22, officials said.

The U.S. Center for Disease Control is assisting state officials and conducting lab tests related to the outbreak.

The facility has agreed to not admit new patients until the outbreak is over.
All of those infected were located in the respiratory ward of the facility and are connected to ventilators to help them breathe, officials previously said.

How the virus spread through the center is unknown.

Many of the patients have lived at the facility "all or most of their lives" because of medical conditions the children have, state Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Shereef Elnahal said in a press conference Wednesday.

There is "no immediate threat to the public" regarding the virus spreading to the rest of the populace, said Governor Phil Murphy.

The Department of Health was notified of the virus on Oct. 9. The department needs four weeks without an additional case reported in order for the outbreak to be considered over.

The state began monitoring the situation Oct. 10. State health officials conducted a surprise inspection at the facility last weekend. State personnel will remain at the facility until the outbreak is over.

Adenoviruses are typically a family of viruses that often cause mild illness, particularly in young children. But this particular strain of adenovirus (#7) is affecting medically fragile children with severely compromised immune systems.

Adenoviruses can cause mild to severe illness, though serious illness is less common. People with weakened immune systems, or existing respiratory or cardiac disease, are at higher risk of developing severe illness from an adenovirus infection, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com

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