<p>So far, they don’t know what the cause of the disease is but there are cases over a 100 mile radius in CA, with some patients having paralysis for 6 months since the onset of the disease. The BBC has an article about it–there isn’t a lot known about it yet, but 5 of the patients have enterovirus-68 in their system.</p>
<p><a href=“Rare 'polio-like' disease reports - BBC News”>http://www.bbc.com/news/health-26289614</a></p>
<p>Wonder if they’ll identify a true underlying cause or question the veracity of the symptoms, as in NYS a few years back <a href=“The Mystery of 18 Twitching Teenagers in Le Roy - The New York Times”>The Mystery of 18 Twitching Teenagers in Le Roy - The New York Times;
<p>Scary. Where in CA is this happening?</p>
<p>Nobody is saying where this outbreak is being observed. However, the doctors interviewed are from Stanford Hospital and UCSF, and there is mention of the disease possibly coming from Asia. So I’m guessing the SF Bay Area, which has a lot of Asian immigrants.</p>
<p>Yes, the reports I read ID docs at Stanford, so I’d guess they must be within 100 miles of Stanford. Details remain sketchy. </p>
<p>Very troubling that in the prior cases of NY teen females they accused the patients of making up the symptoms instead of figuring out the real cause and providing the care and treatment deserved. Sadly, it seemed a lot like chronic Lyme patients are treated as well as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients. </p>
<p>I think the permanent paralysis six months after onset is very scary to everyone, especially since reports are that there is NO sign of improvement. I expect the pediatric infectious disease docs will be busier than ever with this–very scary!</p>
<p>Ugh. My D is in San Francisco.</p>
<p>Seems like it strikes very young tykes from what I’ve read so far. They recommend frequent hand washing and good hygiene to reduce infections. </p>
<p>This scares me. My mom was a nurse in a polio ward in the early '50’s, with people in iron lungs. She was adamantly “for” immunizations as a result of her experiences. This is a very scary situation </p>
<p>My D works in a hospital that serves very low income people in the Bay area. I will be following this closely.</p>
<p>Weird.
They don’t appear to be connected according to an nbc story.
I remember having something similar when I was about 10. It didn’t hurt, but I couldn’t walk. Don’t remember how long it lasted, but the dr came out to the house.
Of course Drs. used to make house calls more often in the ’ 60s than they do now.
I dont think Ive ever heard of someone making house calls, unless they were specifically contracted for that.</p>
<p>In our state, there was a grant to allow docs to make house calls to SR patients. The patients loved it, but I believe the funding ran out. Docs these days are struggling to keep afloat, with all the reimbursement cuts–house calls is NOT on their radar, much as some may like the concept. </p>
<p>There are very similar stories coming out of India. I wonder if they’re related. </p>
<p>At this point there are some suspecting a connection but still a lot of unknowns. Enterovirus-68 has been found in 5 of the patients in CA, which is also often found in chronic Lyme patients. Stanford seems to have had several of the patients turn to them, as they do have a CFIDS clinic (with a 4-year waiting list). There hasn’t been many helpful details of the reports I’ve read to date. </p>
<p>BBC has had more info than US sources, generally, so far. </p>
<p>I have relatives in LA and SF, including a teacher of young kids and a podiatrist who will be doing her internship and residency in CA (hoping UCSF), if all goes according to plan. </p>
<p>^ I see now that the BBC article says a possible Asian connection. I missed that in my first skimming, my apologies.
I think it’s important to emphasize that this is incredibly rare. Let’s hope it stays that way. </p>
<p><a href=“National Geographic”>National Geographic;