Enterovirus D-68 may be linked to muscle weakness in kids

We are learning more about the Enterovirus D-68 that affected thousands of children last year, which left some kids with weakness or paralysis.

Now there is more evidence linking a new form of the virus to that sudden muscle weakness.

Entero-virus D-68 swept the nation late last summer into fall, sending thousands of children to hospitals.

About 115 kids developed sudden muscle weakness and 14 children died, including 4-year-old Eli Waller of Hamilton Township, New Jersey.

Researchers in California have now found new genetic clues showing evidence of a new strain called B-1.

B-1 has mutations that make it resemble other Enteroviruses including polio, which also caused paralysis.

But it seems a child's genetics also play a role.

This would explain why some children experienced paralysis and others didn't.

In our area, five children were seen at the Children's Hospital for sudden muscle weakness with changes to their spine.

Today, all have improved but none has fully recovered.

But there's more work to be done to figure out how to protect kids from these severe complications.

Enteroviruses are typically seen in the summer and fall and we could see this one circulate again this year.

In most cases, it's a bad cold but parents should always be on the lookout for worsening symptoms such as shortness of breath and wheezing, especially if your child has asthma.