Emergency rooms and intensive care units across the Midwest are filling with young patients suffering from a respiratory illness called Enterovirus 68. Dr. Christine Nyquist is with Children's Hospital of Colorado. "One out of three children coming to the emergency department are with respiratory problems. That's a lot."
Will Cornejo was hospitalized in Denver after becoming infected last week. "I was really scared, I remember thinking I was going to die." His mother, Jennifer Cornejo, says it was terrifying. "He was white as a ghost , his lips were blue , he was completely unconscious. We weren't sure he was going to make it."
The virus first surfaced in mid-August in Chicago and Kansas City. 500 children were treated at one hospital alone in Missouri, some needed intensive care. The virus causes mild cold-like symptoms that last about a week, but the CDC is trying to figure out why this summer's cases are so severe. " If your child is having a difficult time breathing, that's when you call your doctor or call 911 for an emergency situation," says Dr. Nyquist.
Experts say the start of school is likely spreading the disease faster, so washing hands and sanitizing common surfaces is important. The CDC says parents should make sure sick kids drink lots of fluids and rest. So far, there have been no deaths.
