Kentucky is one of ten states dealing with suspected cases of a rare illness caused by enterovirus 68.
The respiratory virus which has sent children to the hospital in Ohio, Alabama, Georgia, and a handful of other states is now showing up in central Kentucky. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say five of 10 suspected cases in the state have turned up positive results.
Lexington Health Commissioner Dr. Rice Leach says health officials are unsure how far the virus could spread.
"We don't know why it reoccurred and so vigorously, but it goes away in most cases and there's no vaccine for it and no treatment for it," he says.
While no fatalities have been reported, roughly 15 percent of the cases in Missouri have led to stays in intensive care. Leach says previous underlying conditions appear to be the key factor leading to hospitalizations.
"If you have a child that's got asthma or some other lung condition and they come down with a cold and it doesn't start acting like an normal cold, then that child ought to go see a physician very quickly. If you have an otherwise healthy child and they get a bad cold that drags on and it doesn't get a whole lot worse, you can take care of it at home with the usual cold medications," Leach advises.
Officials say most instances are mild and self-limiting, but anyone in contact with infected patients should wash their hands regularly and clean surfaces the patient may have touched.
While researchers don’t yet know why the illness appears limited to children, Leach says it could be due to immunities built up over time.
Copyright 2014 WUKY
