Volume 26, Number 2—February 2020
CME ACTIVITY - Research
Characteristics of Patients with Acute Flaccid Myelitis, United States, 2015–2018
Nilay McLaren, Adriana Lopez, Sarah Kidd, John X. Zhang, W. Allan Nix, Ruth Link-Gelles, Adria Lee, and Janell A. Routh
Table 3
Descriptive characteristics of confirmed AFM cases in patients <22 years of age from peak years, United States, January–December 2016 and 2018*
| Characteristic | 2016, n = 143 | 2018, n = 223 | p value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, y, median (range) [IQR] |
5.3 (0.4–21.2) [3.2–9.7] |
5.2 (0.5–21.9) [3.2–7.8] |
0.43 |
| Sex | |||
| M | 86/143 (60) | 131/223 (59) | 0.83 |
| F |
57/143 (40) |
92/223 (41) |
0.83 |
| Lumbar puncture | 135/140 (96) | 208/223 (93) | 0.14 |
| Pleocytosis† | 114/135 (84) | 169/208 (81) | 0.47 |
| CSF, cells/mm3, median (range) [IQR] | 77 (0–3,261) [18–150] | 74 (0–814) [27–152] | 0.22 |
| Upper extremity involvement only | 48/143 (34) | 73/223 (33) | 0.91 |
| Lower extremity involvement only | 25/143 (17) | 24/223 (11) | 0.08 |
| Paralysis of all 4 limbs | 45/143 (31) | 56/223 (25) | 0.19 |
| Severe AFM‡ | 9/143 (6) | 0/223 | <0.001 |
| Cranial nerve lesion |
53/143 (37) |
43/223 (19) |
<0.001 |
| Illness within previous 4 weeks | |||
| Any fever | 93/137 (68) | 165/221 (75) | <0.001 |
| Any respiratory illness | 106/139 (76) | 176/221 (80) | 0.01 |
| Any gastrointestinal illness | 33/126 (26) | 78/218 (36) | 0.002 |
| Any respiratory illness or fever |
122/143 (85) |
206/223 (92) |
0.04 |
| Enterovirus/rhinovirus RNA positive | 34/94 (36) | 64/164 (39) | 0.69 |
| Enterovirus D68 | 24/34 (71) | 29/64 (45) | 0.02 |
| Enterovirus A71 | 2/34 (6) | 11/64 (17) | 0.21 |
*Values are no./total (%), except where indicated otherwise. AFM, acute flaccid myelitis; CSF, cerebrospinal fluid; IQR, interquartile range.
†Defined as leukocyte count >5 cells/mm3.
‡Defined as AFM cases of respiratory distress that required mechanical ventilation, cranial nerve involvement, and paralysis of all 4 limbs.
Page created: January 15, 2020
Page updated: January 15, 2020
Page reviewed: January 15, 2020
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