Health
Nevada children have experienced rare brain infections and abscesses as CDC investigates
After instances of mind abscesses in youngsters reportedly tripled final 12 months in southern Nevada, the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) is investigating potential causes for the spike.
Dr. Taryn Bragg, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Intermountain Main Kids’s Hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada, reported the sudden variety of instances to the Southern Nevada Well being District, which issued a public well being advisory in January 2023.
“We began noticing the infections in March 2022,” Dr. Bragg instructed “Fox & Associates Weekend” on Sunday morning. “The overwhelming majority of youngsters introduced with sinus infections that pretty quickly progressed to abscesses forming within the mind.”
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A majority of the children additionally confirmed the presence of the micro organism Streptococcus intermedius, which is often discovered within the oral and respiratory cavity, she mentioned.
“It usually doesn’t end in infections, however it definitely can — and it’s the most typical organism that may end in mind abscesses,” Dr. Bragg mentioned.
After instances of mind abscesses in youngsters reportedly tripled final 12 months in southern Nevada, the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) is investigating potential causes for the spike. (iStock)
The physician hasn’t seen proof that the infections are brought on by environmental elements in southern Nevada.
“We didn’t discover something native to our group that may assist us mitigate and attempt to cut back an infection charges,” she instructed Fox Information Digital in a cellphone interview.
‘Very completely different from frequent chilly’
As Dr. Bragg defined on “Fox & Associates Weekend,” the kids who got here to the hospital with mind infections have been already “extremely sick” once they arrived.
“It’s very completely different out of your frequent chilly,” she mentioned.
There haven’t been any fatalities from these pediatric mind abscesses in Nevada.
“Many of the youngsters had vital fevers, extreme complications, lethargy, even perhaps neurologic deficits, like speech or language difficulties or weak point.”
A mind abscess, or cerebral abscess, happens when an an infection causes a pus-filled pocket to kind within the mind. (iStock)
There haven’t been any fatalities from these pediatric mind abscesses in southern Nevada, and the overwhelming majority of the kids have “absolutely recovered with out neurologic deficit,” Dr. Bragg mentioned.
A lot of them have required long-term antibiotics and a number of surgical procedures, nevertheless.
Regardless of the spike, mind abscesses are uncommon general
Mind abscesses are uncommon amongst youngsters, in keeping with the advisory.
Between 2015 and 2021, Clark County in southern Nevada solely noticed about 5 instances per 12 months amongst these age 18 and youthful, the Southern Nevada Well being District said.
In 2022, there have been 17 instances, a rise of 240%.
The youngsters who got here to the hospital with mind infections have been “extremely sick” once they arrived.
The common age of the sufferers was 12 years previous — and 76% of them have been male.
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Dr. Jessica Penney, an epidemic intelligence officer with the CDC, introduced the rise of pediatric mind abscesses on the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Convention, held final week in Atlanta, Georgia, in keeping with this system’s agenda.
CDC is investigating
The CDC first mentioned the rise in pediatric mind abscesses in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report in September 2022.
After three youngsters in California have been hospitalized with the situation in Might 2022, the company started investigating.
Mind abscesses are sometimes identified by MRI scans, blood assessments and/or assessments of samples from the contaminated space. (iStock)
“Discussions with clinicians in a number of states raised considerations a few attainable enhance in pediatric intracranial infections, notably these brought on by Streptococcus intermedius, throughout the previous 12 months and the attainable contributing function of SARS-CoV-2 an infection,” the CDC said within the report.
What to find out about mind abscesses
A mind abscess, or cerebral abscess, happens when an an infection causes a pus-filled pocket to kind within the mind, in keeping with Johns Hopkins Drugs.
The commonest trigger is the presence of micro organism or fungi within the mind, which might enter from the ears, sinuses or bloodstream.
Those that expertise a head harm or have surgical procedure in that space may additionally develop an abscess.
The commonest trigger is the presence of micro organism or fungi within the mind.
Some persons are at a better threat, akin to those that have HIV/AIDS, a coronary heart defect, a historical past of intravenous drug use or a situation that weakens the immune system, Johns Hopkins states.
Within the instances reported in southern Nevada, 64% of the kids reported signs together with nasal congestion and runny nostril, in keeping with the general public well being advisory.
One other 50% skilled headache, headache with fever and head accidents with the danger of concussion.
A mind abscess is a medical emergency that requires rapid remedy within the hospital, an infectious illnesses doctor instructed Fox Information Digital. (iStock)
Different frequent signs embody visible disturbances, weak point, seizures, nausea, vomiting, confusion, adjustments in consciousness, neck or again stiffness, and problem speaking or transferring, per Johns Hopkins.
The situation might be identified by MRI or CT scans, blood assessments and/or samples from the abscess.
Within the southern Nevada instances, 79% of the kids’s dad and mom sought medical care that finally led to hospitalization, with 50% of them going straight to the emergency room.
“A mind abscess is a medical emergency.”
The infections are normally handled with sturdy antibiotics, steroids, antifungal medicine and/or anti-seizure medicine, per Johns Hopkins.
In extreme instances, surgical procedure could also be required to empty or take away the abscess.
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“A mind abscess is a medical emergency,” Dr. MarkAlain Déry, an infectious illness doctor practising at Entry Well being Louisiana, mentioned in an interview with Fox Information Digital.
“It must be drained instantly. The affected person must be within the hospital, being watched by an infectious illness physician.”
A number of the extra extreme dangers related to mind abscesses embody neurologic deficits and seizures, the physician added.
Doable hyperlink to pandemic
Mind abscesses in youngsters decreased when the COVID-19 pandemic started, then rose in the summertime of 2021 — across the identical time that pandemic-related restrictions began to elevate, the CDC said in its report.
Instances peaked in March 2022 earlier than declining to baseline ranges.
Round half of the kids (not pictured) with mind infections skilled complications, complications with fever and head accidents with the danger of concussion. (iStock)
The timing has led some to counsel that the spike is brought on by “immunity debt,” through which pandemic restrictions akin to masking and lockdowns may have led to weakened immune programs.
Dr. Déry mentioned he believes within the idea of immunity debt, however doubts that it’s an element within the mind infections spike.
“I believe immunity debt applies extra to the respiratory viruses, like RSV and influenza,” he instructed Fox Information Digital. “With a mind abscess, it’s brought on by micro organism or parasites, usually in instances the place folks have had dental work or an ENT (ear, nostril and throat) process.”
He added, “You do not simply get a mind abscess out of nowhere.”
Different physicians are additionally unsure about whether or not there’s a hyperlink to the pandemic.
A few third of the kids’s dad and mom mentioned that they had stopped masking previous to the onset of the an infection, Dr. Bragg instructed Fox Information Digital. (iStock)
“We do not know but if that is only a cluster of instances or a nationwide pattern, so we will not say whether or not a pause within the immune system response because of COVID lockdowns or closures is taking part in a job, the place the response to primary bugs like strep, which our youngsters hadn’t seen shortly, is delayed,” Dr. Marc Siegel, a professor of medication at NYU Langone Medical Heart and a Fox Information medical contributor, instructed Fox Information Digital.
The physician does consider, nevertheless, that the surge in mind infections may stem from folks failing to acknowledge sinus and ear infections as a result of “hyperfocus” on COVID.
“You do not simply get a mind abscess out of nowhere.”
“Now we have seen a surge in sinus and ear infections just lately — many undetected — which might unfold to mind abscesses in a small variety of instances,” he mentioned.
“It’s a numbers recreation — elevated sinus and ear infections in wholesome younger teenagers result in a corresponding enhance within the variety of abscesses.”
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A few third of the kids’s dad and mom mentioned that they had stopped masking previous to the onset of the an infection, Dr. Bragg instructed Fox Information Digital.
Till extra data is acquired from different states throughout the nation, Dr. Bragg mentioned it will likely be tough to make any “definitive willpower” as to what’s inflicting the infections.
“Regardless of the three- or fourfold enhance in numbers, it’s nonetheless a comparatively small pattern measurement,” she famous.
The physician expects to see extra proof that the infections are widespread. Already, she has heard about instances in Phoenix, Seattle, California, New York and Michigan.
“We’d see extra data popping out of different subspecialties, akin to pediatric ENT and basic surgical procedure instances,” Dr. Bragg mentioned.
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Though Mr. Kennedy’s embrace of recovery farms may be novel, the concept stretches back almost a century. In 1935, the government opened the United States Narcotic Farm in Lexington, Ky., to research and treat addiction. Over the years, residents included Chet Baker and William S. Burroughs (who portrayed the institution in his novel, “Junkie: Confessions of an Unredeemed Drug Addict”). The program had high relapse rates and was tainted by drug experiments on human subjects. By 1975, as local treatment centers began to proliferate around the country, the program closed.
In America, therapeutic communities for addiction treatment became popular in the 1960s and ’70s. Some, like Synanon, became notorious for cultlike, abusive environments. There are now perhaps 3,000 worldwide, researchers estimate, including one that Mr. Kennedy has also praised — San Patrignano, an Italian program whose centerpiece is a highly regarded bakery, staffed by residents.
“If we do go down the road of large government-funded therapeutic communities, I’d want to see some oversight to ensure they live up to modern standards,” said Dr. Sabet, who is now president of the Foundation for Drug Policy Solutions. “We should get rid of the false dichotomy, too, between these approaches and medications, since we know they can work together for some people.”
Should Mr. Kennedy be confirmed, his authority to establish healing farms would be uncertain. Building federal treatment farms in “depressed rural areas,” as he said in his documentary, presumably on public land, would hit political and legal roadblocks. Fully legalizing and taxing cannabis to pay for the farms would require congressional action.
In the concluding moments of the documentary, Mr. Kennedy invoked Carl Jung, the Swiss psychiatrist whose views on spirituality influenced Alcoholics Anonymous. Dr. Jung, he said, felt that “people who believed in God got better faster and that their recovery was more durable and enduring than people who didn’t.”
The debate about the benefits and risks of fluoride is ongoing, as RFK Jr. — incoming President Trump’s pick for HHS secretary — pushes to remove it from the U.S. water supply.
“Fluoride is an industrial waste associated with arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, IQ loss, neurodevelopmental disorders and thyroid disease,” RFK wrote in a post on X in November.
A new study published in JAMA Pediatrics on Jan. 6 found another correlation between fluoride exposure and children’s IQs.
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Study co-author Kyla Taylor, PhD, who is based in North Carolina, noted that fluoridated water has been used “for decades” to reduce dental cavities and improve oral health.
Fluoride exposure has been linked to a variety of negative health effects, yet benefits oral health. (iStock)
“However, there is concern that pregnant women and children are getting fluoride from many sources, including drinking water, water-added foods and beverages, teas, toothpaste, floss and mouthwash, and that their total fluoride exposure is too high and may affect fetal, infant and child neurodevelopment,” she told Fox News Digital.
The new research, led by scientists at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), analyzed 74 epidemiological studies on children’s IQ and fluoride exposure.
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The studies measured fluoride in drinking water and urine across 10 countries, including Canada, China, Denmark, India, Iran, Mexico, Pakistan, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. (None were conducted in the U.S.)
The meta-analysis found a “statistically significant association” between higher fluoride exposure and lower children’s IQ scores, according to Taylor.
“[It showed] that the more fluoride a child is exposed to, the more likely that child’s IQ will be lower than if they were not exposed,” she said.
Scientists found a “statistically significant association” between higher fluoride exposure and lower children’s IQ scores. (iStock)
These results were consistent with six previous meta-analyses, all of which reported the same “statistically significant inverse associations” between fluoride exposure and children’s IQs, Taylor emphasized.
The research found that for every 1mg/L increase in urinary fluoride, there was a 1.63-point decrease in IQ.
‘Safe’ exposure levels
The World Health Organization (WHO) has established 1.5mg/L as the “upper safe limit” of fluoride in drinking water.
“There is concern that pregnant women and children are getting fluoride from many sources.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. Public Health Service recommends a fluoride concentration of 0.7 mg/L in drinking water.
“There was not enough data to determine if 0.7 mg/L of fluoride exposure in drinking water affected children’s IQs,” Taylor noted.
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Higher levels of the chemical can be found in wells and community water serving nearly three million people in the U.S., the researcher noted.
She encouraged pregnant women and parents of small children to be mindful of their total fluoride intake.
Nearly three million people have access to wells and community water with fluoride levels above the levels suggested by the World Health Organization. (iStock)
“If their water is fluoridated, they may wish to replace tap water with low-fluoride bottled water, like purified water, and limit exposure from other sources, such as dental products or black tea,” she said.
“Parents can use low-fluoride bottled water to mix with powdered infant formula and limit use of fluoridated toothpaste by young children.”
For more Health articles, visit www.foxnews.com/health.
While the research did not intend to address broader public health implications of water fluoridation in the U.S., Taylor suggested that the findings could help inform future research into the impact of fluoride on children’s health.
Dental health expert shares cautions
In response to this study and other previous research, Dr. Ellie Phillips, DDS, an oral health educator based in Austin, Texas, told Fox News Digital that she does not support water fluoridation.
The study researcher encouraged parents of small children to be mindful of their total fluoride intake. (iStock)
“I join those who vehemently oppose public water fluoridation, and I question why our water supplies are still fluoridated in the 21st century,” she wrote in an email.
“There are non-fluoridated cities and countries where the public enjoy high levels of oral health, which in some cases appear better than those that are fluoridated.”
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Phillips called the fluoride debate “confusing” even among dentists, as the American Dental Association (ADA) advocates for fluoride use for cavity prevention through water fluoridation, toothpaste and mouthwash — “sometimes in high concentrations.”
Fluoride is used in water, toothpaste and mouthwash to help prevent cavities. (iStock)
“[But] biologic (holistic) dentists generally encourage their patients to fear fluoride and avoid its use entirely, even if their teeth are ravaged by tooth decay,” she said.
“Topical fluoride is beneficial, while systemic consumption poses risks.”
Phillips encouraged the public to consider varying fluoride compounds, the effect of different concentrations and the “extreme difference” between applying fluoride topically and ingesting it.
“Topical fluoride is beneficial, while systemic consumption poses risks,” she cautioned.
“Individuals must take charge of their own oral health using natural and informed strategies.”
The study received funding from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Intramural Research Program.
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