Enteroviral Illness Costs Support Need For Drugs

The enteroviruses are a diverse range of organisms which can cause a variety of symptoms, but which are rarely life-threatening, ranging from aseptic meningitis to common summer colds, and this has made them uninspiring targets for drug development. At the moment there are no licensed drugs for enteroviral disease.

However, this view may be changing, as it becomes recognized that, despite their relatively benign nature, enteroviruses are highly contagious and can exact a significant medical and economic toll. Many are considered nuisance illnesses and in fact the most common symptom is fever. These viruses can, however, contribute to more serious illnesses such as myocarditis and neonatal sepsis.

In order to determine the level of morbidity associated with these diseases and their cost to society, a team of researchers, led by Michael Pichichero of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, USA, surveyed children presenting at a single clinic with the symptoms of enteroviral illness. The team studied several syndromes associated with these viruses, and calculated for each how many children missed school or parents missed work, the numbers of days missed, and the direct costs incurred in medical treatment. A total of 380 children aged between 4 and 18 were surveyed. While every patient in the study experienced high fever, they also experienced a range of other symptoms including: