Cousin Of Polio May Be Causing Outbreak Of Paralysis In Children
In 2014, doctors diagnosed a mysterious illness that was paralyzing kids in California and across the country. In the past few months, the pattern has started to reemerge.
Los Angeles Times:
Her Toddler Suddenly Paralyzed, Mother Tries To Solve A Vexing Medical Mystery
Erin Olivera waited weeks for doctors to tell her why her youngest son was paralyzed. Ten-month-old Lucian had started crawling oddly — his left leg dragging behind his right — and soon was unable to lift his head, following Erin only with his eyes. She took him to a hospital in Los Angeles, but doctors there didn’t know how to treat what they saw. (Karlamangla, 10/21)
In other public health news —
The Mercury News:
Sexually Transmitted Diseases Surge In California
Cases of sexually transmitted diseases in the United States have reached new highs, including an increase in syphilis not seen since the mid-1990s, federal health officials said in a report last week...California topped the list in number of cases, although the rate of infection for some sexually transmitted diseases, such as chlamydia, was highest in Alaska where there is a smaller population. But the Golden State saw rises in all three diseases. Gonorrhea cases nearly doubled in five years, from 27,500 infections in 2011, to 54,000 in 2015. At the same time, funding for STD prevention stagnated in the state. (Abram, 10/24)