14 DAY TRIAL // A statement issued by the Rhode Island Department of Health this past October 1 says that, towards the end of September, a 10-year-old girl living in this state passed away after contracting both the respiratory virus EV-D68 and the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.
Specialists say that combinations of EV-68 and Staphylococcus aureus are very rare. However, when they do occur, they cause both children and adults to develop severe health trouble, and can even prove deadly.
Despite the fact that at the time of her death the 10-year-old was carrying the respiratory virus EV-D68 in her body, experts say that it was the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria that caused her to develop sepsis and eventually killed her.
“The Rhode Island Department of Health has confirmed that a Rhode Island child died last week as a result of Staphylococcus aureus sepsis associated with enteroviral infection (EV-D68),” health officials wrote in their statement.
It is understood that, since EV-D68 made a comeback in the US in mid-August until present day, health officials with the country's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have documented the presence of the virus in the body of four dead individuals.
However, specialists are yet to figure out whether their being infected with this respiratory virus had anything to do with these people's death. As the Rhode Island Health Department put it, “The role that EV-D68 infection played in these deaths is unclear at this time.”
The symptoms of EV-D68 infection
Specialists reassure that, more often than not, folks who come to contract this respiratory virus merely get a runny nose, maybe a low grade fever. Hence, most of the people exposed to EV-D68 have no trouble getting back on their feet.
“Many of us will have EV-D68. Most of us will have very mild symptoms and all but very few will recover quickly and completely. The vast majority of children exposed to EV-D68 recover completely,” said Michael Fine, M.D., director of the Rhode Island Department of Health.
However, infections with this virus can also trigger more severe symptoms such as wheezing and problems breathing. Neurologic issues might also occur, but are very rare. According to evidence at hand, children and people with a weak immune system are the ones most likely to display such symptoms.
Information shared with the public says that, since mid-August until now, a total of 472 cases of infection with the respiratory virus EV-D68 have been documented across 41 states and the District of Colombia.
Looking to keep the virus from spreading any further, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put together an infographic detailing what people can do to keep themselves safe. The infographic in question is available below.
