Cases Of Acute Flaccid Myelitis Condition Up To 6 In WA: DOH

SEATTLE, WA - Six young children from the Puget Sound area may have developed a rare, polio-like condition called acute flaccid myelitis (AFM). The possible cases are spread across King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Lewis counties, and the children are all between 7 months and 5 years old, according to health officials.

The five possible cases here are part larger rise in AFM cases seen since 2014. The Centers for Disease Control has tallied 362 cases in the U.S. since then. In 2018 alone, 38 cases have been detected - up from the 33 cases seen in all of 2017.

On Thursday afternoon, the state Department of Health updated the number of cases to six after a child from Skagit County presented symptoms.

A variety of factors - some mosquito-born viruses, toxins, genetics - can cause AFM. The condition affects the spinal cord, causing paralysis in the limbs. The first symptoms of AFM include respiratory distress and fever. Later symptoms include weakness in the face, drooping eyelids, slurred speech, and difficulty moving the eyes.

The CDC has not pinpointed a cause of the uptick in AFM cases. CDC data show that cases have spiked during summer months in past years. Mosquito-borne diseases, like West Nile, are known to cause the onset of AFM.

The state Department of Health is aware of the five possible cases, as are the health departments in each affected county.

“At this point there isn’t evidence that would point to a single source of illness among these cases,” state infectious disease epidemiologist Dr. Scott Lindquist said in a press release. “We’re working closely with medical providers and public health agencies. We’ll continue to investigate and share information when we have it.”

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