Acute Flaccid Myelitis (AFM) | VitalSigns | CDC

Acute Flaccid Myelitis (AFM) | VitalSigns | CDC

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Acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) is a rare but serious syndrome  (a pattern of symptoms) that causes limb weakness, mostly  in children. Three national outbreaks have occurred starting  in 2014, when CDC began surveillance for AFM.

Key Points:

• 233 AFM cases occurred in 41 states in 2018.
• The average age of patients with AFM was 5 years.
• On average, CDC received reports of suspected AFM cases 18 days after patient's limb weakness began.

Video: July 2019 Acute Flaccid Myelitis

New CDC #VitalSigns report: acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a rare but serious syndrome, causes limb weakness, mostly in children. Three national outbreaks have occurred in 2014, 2016, & 2018, with most patients developing #AFM in late summer/early fall. http://bit.ly/VSAFM

Vital Signs is a monthly report that appears as part of the CDC journal, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.