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Hospital: 8 Cases Of Respiratory Virus Confirmed

A Springfield hospital says federal and state health officials have confirmed eight cases of an unusual respiratory virus that has been affecting children around the country.

Baystate Children's Hospital said in a statement that eight specimens tested positive for enterovirus D68.

Dr. Michael Klatte, a pediatric infectious disease specialist, did not give details about the patients but said most of them had already returned home.

The state Department of Public Health said last week that an 8-year-old girl with a history of asthma from southeastern Massachusetts was the state's first lab-confirmed case of the virus. The girl was treated at Boston Children's Hospital and has recovered.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said as of Thursday there had been 226 lab-confirmed cases of enterovirus D68 in 38 states.

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