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Recently the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that there are dozens of babies infected with the deadly virus and this occurs mostly in Europe and America. According to data from WHO, 26 babies in Croatia, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden and England have been infected with a disease caused by the rarest enterovirus, namely echovirus-11.
Diseases Caused by Enteroviruses
First, you need to know about enterovirus viruses, according to the WHO website, enteroviruses are a group of viruses that can cause various infectious diseases and are one of the triggers for annual epidemics.
Then, as reported by the journal Frontiers in Pediatrics, enterovirus is a virus that is often the cause of perinatal infections in neonates (babies aged 0-28 days).
Among the various subtypes of this virus, echovirus type 11 or what is now better known as Echovirus-11 is the main cause of perinatal infections in babies. In fact, this virus can also spread very quickly and widely in certain geographical areas.
About Echovirus-11
As explained above, Echovirus-11 is a disease caused by an enterovirus virus. This virus is a positive strain RNA virus belonging to the enterovirus genus from the Picornaviridae family.
Like other types of enteroviruses, Echovirus-11 infection is associated with a wide spectrum of disease, ranging from mild nonspecific symptoms to systemic disorders such as rash, fever, severe neurological disorders (including meningitis, encephalitis, and acute flaccid paralysis).
According to a report from WHO, Echovirus-11 (E-11) causes severe disease in neonates and infants, with quite high morbidity and mortality.
In addition, E-11 can also be transmitted vertically from mother to child, making infection control difficult. Infection can cause inflammatory diseases in neonates, including acute hepatitis with coagulopathy. E-11 and other enteroviruses continue to circulate in Europe.
Echovirus-11 Symptoms
If a baby or adult is infected with Echovirus-11, it will cause the following symptoms as reported on the WebMD page:
- Fever
- Diarrhea
- Rash
- Jaundice
- Nasal congestion
- Cough
- Headache.
Some of the symptoms above can appear gradually or very quickly in different people. However, these symptoms tend to appear more in babies. Then, it turns out that newborn babies infected with Echovirus-11 can also cause various other life-threatening diseases, such as:
- Sepsis, namely the occurrence of an infectious response throughout the body which can be fatal if not treated.
- Meningoencephalitis, namely inflammation of the membranes around the brain and spinal cord.
- Myocarditis, which is inflammation of the heart muscle.
- Hepatitis, namely inflammation of the liver.
- Encephalitis, namely swelling of the brain.
How is Echovirus-11 transmitted?
Echovirus-11 is mostly spread through contact, where newborns can get the virus at birth from their mothers. This virus may not cause any symptoms in the digestive tract, but can cause dangerous infections in people with a weak or underdeveloped immune system.
Some studies have noted that there may also be other outbreaks of Echovirus-11 in larger communities and could also occur in groups of children in day care or care facilities.
Diagnosis of Echovirus-11
Usually to be able to diagnose Echovirus-11, doctors will use a series of laboratory tests to try and identify the virus. Several tests carried out to determine the diagnosis of Echovirus-11 according to WebMD are:
- Blood tests can give your doctor a clue about the type of infection you have.
- Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) test, which is some fluid from the spine that can help doctors check for viruses in the spine and brain.
Prevention and Treatment of Echovirus-11
Until now, there is no vaccine or sure way to prevent the spread of Echovirus-11. The reason is, most people can also be infected with Echovirus without causing any symptoms at all. Some of them can even have quite mild symptoms and heal on their own.
So, the best way to prevent the spread of this virus is to wash your hands thoroughly and disinfect surfaces.
Then, if you or your baby have several symptoms of Echovirus-11, it is necessary to immediately undergo an examination to confirm the diagnosis and get treatment.
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