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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. RouthComments to Author 
Author affiliations: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Main Article

Table 4

Descriptive characteristics of confirmed AFM cases in patients <22 years of age who were negative for enterovirus A71 during peak years, United States, January–December 2016 and 2018*

Characteristic 2016, n = 141 2018, n = 212 p value
Age, y, median (range) [IQR]
5.4 (0.4–21.2) [3.3–9.8]
5.3 (0.5–21.9) [3.4–7.8]
0.68
Sex
M 86/141 (61) 120/212 (57) 0.44
F
55/141 (39)
92/212 (43)
0.44
Lumbar puncture 134/139 (96) 197/212 (93) 0.13
Pleocytosis† 113/132 (86) 158/184 (86) 1
CSF, cells/mm3, median (range) [IQR] 73 (0–3,261) [18–150] 73 (0–814) [25.5–149] 0.86
Upper extremity involvement only 48/141 (34) 71/212 (33) 1
Lower extremity involvement only 25/141 (18) 23/212 (11) 0.08
Paralysis of all 4 limbs 44/141 (31) 50/212 (24) 0.14
Severe AFM‡ 9/141 (6) 0/212 <0.001
Cranial nerve lesion
52/141 (37)
42/212 (20)
<0.001
Illness within previous 4 weeks
Any fever 91/135 (67) 154/210 (73) <0.001
Any respiratory illness 104/137 (76) 172/210 (82) 0.004
Any gastrointestinal illness 32/124 (26) 72/207 (35) 0.003
Any respiratory illness or fever
120/141 (85)
195/212 (92)
0.05
Enterovirus/rhinovirus RNA positive 32/92 (35) 53/153 (35) 1
Enterovirus D68 24/32 (75) 29/53 (55) 0.07

*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.

Main Article

Page created: January 15, 2020
Page updated: January 15, 2020
Page reviewed: January 15, 2020
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.
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