Doctors are asking parents to keep an eye out for signs of a rare but serious condition that can cause permanent paralysis and breathing problems in kids called acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM.
“Oftentimes it happens rapidly,” says Kevin Messacar, MD, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Aurora who has treated a number of AFM cases.
Redfield said parents should be alert for the signs of AFM, and seek emergency care quickly for children who show any of these signs. He said parents shouldn’t be afraid to visit the emergency room, even in the midst of the“AFM can progress quickly,” he said. “And patients can become paralyzed over the course of hours or days and requireThere’s no specific treatment for AFM. Doctors help patients manage symptoms on a case-by-case basis.
Experts stressed that while it is important to be informed, there’s no reason to panic. AFM cases are very rare. Most kids get nothing more than a cold after catching an enterovirus. It could also be that all the mask wearing andwe’re doing will have a side benefit: preventing cases of AFM along with COVID-19.
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