Volume 26, Number 2—February 2020
CME ACTIVITY - Research
Characteristics of Patients with Acute Flaccid Myelitis, United States, 2015–2018
Table 2
Descriptive characteristics of confirmed AFM cases in patients <22 years of age from peak months versus nonpeak months, United States, January 2015–December 2018*
Characteristic | All peak months, n = 268† | All nonpeak months, n = 148‡ | p value |
---|---|---|---|
Age, y, median (range) [IQR] |
5.2 (0.5–21.9) [3.3–7.8] |
5.7 (0.3−21.9) [3.2–10.6] |
0.18 |
Sex | |||
M | 159/268 (59) | 90/148 (61) | 0.83 |
F |
109/268 (41) |
58/148 (39) |
0.83 |
Lumbar puncture | 251/267 (94) | 140/145 (97) | 0.35 |
Pleocytosis§ | 212/239 (89) | 99/136 (73) | <0.001 |
CSF, cells/mm3, median (range) [IQR] | 88 (0–814) [30–154] | 44 (0–3,261) [4–118] | <0.001 |
Upper extremity involvement only | 95/268 (35) | 34/148 (23) | 0.01 |
Lower extremity involvement only | 29/268 (11) | 36/148 (24) | 0.001 |
Paralysis of all 4 limbs | 67/268 (25) | 58/148 (39) | 0.004 |
Severe AFM¶ | 5/268 (2) | 13/148 (9) | 0.002 |
Cranial nerve lesion |
72/268 (27) |
34/148 (23) |
0.41 |
Illness within previous 4 weeks | |||
Any fever | 201/262 (77) | 84/145 (58) | <0.001 |
Any respiratory illness | 214/264 (81) | 89/145 (61) | <0.001 |
Any gastrointestinal illness | 80/256 (31) | 43/122 (35) | 0.46 |
Any respiratory illness or fever |
246/268 (92) |
113/148 (76) |
<0.001 |
Enterovirus/rhinovirus RNA positive | 73/192 (38) | 30/97 (31) | 0.25 |
Enterovirus D68 | 42/73 (58) | 11/30 (37) | 0.08 |
Enterovirus A71 | 6/73 (8) | 8/30 (27) | 0.02 |
*Values are no./total (%), except where indicated otherwise. AFM, acute flaccid myelitis; CSF, cerebrospinal fluid; IQR, interquartile range.
†August–October of 2016 and 2018.
‡January–July and November–December of 2016 and 2018, January–December of 2015 and 2017.
§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.