Reference no: EM133669290
Problem
Case Summary:
On August 20, 2014, a boy aged seven years was brought to University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children's Hospital in Illinois. He had symptoms of a mild respiratory illness, including runny nose, sneezing, cough, and body and muscle aches. After examination, the physician sent him home. He instructed the mother to get him to drink plenty of fluids and prescribed cold medicine to make the boy comfortable.
Case:
Two days later, the boy's condition had deteriorated. He had shortness of breath, coughing, and wheezing. His mother brought him back to the hospital. The physician's diagnosis was acute respiratory distress. The boy's physician consulted with the emergency department physician, and the boy was admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Later that night, three additional children, aged six to nine years, were admitted to PICU. They were admitted through the emergency department with similar symptoms. Two had a history of asthma. One girl, who had especially severe symptoms, was put on a ventilator. Health care providers interviewed each parent about their child's symptoms. All parents reported that the symptoms seemed to get progressively worse during a three-day to four-day period. The symptoms suggested a viral infection, perhaps due to the same virus. To confirm, health care providers collected stool and respiratory specimens for laboratory testing.
While awaiting laboratory results, health care providers consulted with the Chief of the Infectious Disease Department. Since this represented an unusual cluster of patients with this condition in the metro area, they also called the Chicago Board of Health to report the cases and to inquire if other hospitals in the area were reporting similar cases.
How would you classify the four recent cases of the mysterious respiratory illness at Children's Hospital in Chicago? Choices include cluster, outbreak, epidemic, or pandemic? Explain.
At this point, is a need for further investigation necessary? Yes or no, and why or why not?