Enterovirus Infects Child in Los Angeles County, 'More Cases to Come"

A Long Beach child has been infected with enterovirus D-68 this week making it the first confirmed case of the virus in Los Angeles County.

Dr. David Michalik, a pediatric infectious disease specialist said that the child was critically ill and placed in the intensive care unit at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach. Michalik explained that the child, “Needed several breathing treatments to keep the airway open, needed frequent examinations and blood work to determine that everything was looking OK.”

CBS Los Angeles reported that the symptoms of enterovirus D-68 include rapid breathing, wheezing, runny nose, coughing and fatigue. This was the seventh case of enterovirus D-68 reported in California during September. The Center for Disease Control is investigating whether the virus is responsible for sudden paralysis symptoms in certain individuals who have fallen ill in Massachusetts and Colorado.

The AFP News Agency reported that the outbreak of enterovirus D68 in Colorado coincided with the hospitalization of nine children due to limb weakness since early August. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday that the nine children in Colorado “had respiratory illness and later developed neurologic illness.”

The Long Beach child has now been sent home from the hospital and appears to be doing fine. The child’s age and gender were not disclosed.

Michalik said that he was not surprised by the case in L.A. County and added that “we expect more cases to come.”