2.Mysterious Paralysis
In 2015, a wave of American children suffered from acute flaccid paralysis. The outbreak coincided with the flaring up of another respiratory disease caused by the enterovirus EV-D68, a relative of poliovirus.
Many suspected a correlation. However, EV-D68 is not known for causing systemic problems like paralysis, and it was only found in 20 percent of the cases. A case from Virginia led some to believe that the cause might be from another virus called C105. Before the Virginia case, C105 had only been identified in Peru and the Republic of Congo.
The disease is associated with respiratory problems. However, a few African cases were linked with paralysis. The C105 theory could explain why 80 percent of the patients tested negative for EV-D68. Yet none of the patients were found to have enterovirus in their spinal fluid, which would account for the neurological symptoms. The cause of the outbreak remains a mystery.
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