In the early 1950’s, Polio was one of the most unknown and feared disease in the United States. According to the CDC, polio caused hundreds of thousands of cases of paralysis before the development of a vaccine. Since the vaccine, there have been no new cases, until now. In addition, we are seeing the continued spread of another virus that can cause paralysis, Enterovirus D68. Today we will talk about the possible relationships between these two viral diseases and what you our healthcare providers need to be aware of for prompt diagnosis and treatment. 

Today I am delighted to be speaking with my colleague Dr. Kevin Messacar. 

Kevin works in the Infectious Disease department at Children’s Hospital Colorado and is an Associate professor in the department of pediatrics at the University of Colorado school of Medicine.

Resources:

Polio MMWR: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7133e2.htm

EV-D68 MMWR: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7140e1.htm

AFM Consensus Recommendations: https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736(20)32723-9/fulltext

CDC Job Aid for AFM Reporting: https://www.cdc.gov/acute-flaccid-myelitis/downloads/job-aid-for-clinicians-508.pdf

AFM Physician Support Portal: https://wearesrna.org/living-with-myelitis/resources/afm-physician-support-portal/

 https://www.cdc.gov/acute-flaccid-myelitis/downloads/examining-proximal-muscle-weakness-508.pdf