Polio-Like Illness Puzzles California Doctors

[Jazzy]

Health officials in California have warned that children showing signs of a rare, polio-like syndrome should immediately be seen by a doctor.

Since 2012, the disease has appeared in between 20 and 25 previously healthy children from across California, the American Academy of Neurology said in a statement.

None of the patients have died, but the syndrome has been puzzling doctors trying to find a common cause.

The mother of one of the patients told a news conference how her daughter got the disease, saying she wanted to raise awareness about the syndrome.

Sofia Jarvis, 4, developed what looked like asthma two years ago, but soon her left arm stopped moving, and has remained paralyzed ever since, her mother said.

"Sofia went to the treasure chest box to grab her toy," Jessica Jarvis said.

"And I saw her left hand, mid grasp, stop working."

"You can imagine. We had two boys that are very healthy and Sofia was healthy until that point," she told a news conference.

"We did not realise what we were in store for. We did not realise her arm would be permanently paralysed."

Dr Keith Van Haren, paediatric neurologist at Stanford Children's Hospital who is studying the case, said: "The disease resembles but is not the same as polio.

"But this is serious. Most of the children we've seen so far have not recovered use of their arm or their leg."

"The prognosis that we've seen so far is not good."

He stressed that cases were rare and did not "appear to represent a major epidemic".

"We appreciate the help in getting the word out to physicians and families but we want to emphasise that this is not a common phenomenon. We think it's a rare manifestation of a rare virus."

The patients have suffered severe weakness or paralysis, which strikes rapidly and sometimes after a mild respiratory illness.

The California Department of Public Health has not identified any common causes that suggest that the cases are linked.

Source with video

Even though this is rare, it's still pretty scary.