USA Today: Children with polio-like illness continue to struggle

Billy Sticklen celebrated Christmas by getting out of his wheelchair.

Billy used a wheelchair for three months after he mysteriously became paralyzed. His illness began in September with a headache, dizziness and flu-like symptoms. Over the next few days, he developed a fever and excruciating neck pain.

One morning, Billy woke up and couldn't raise his arms. The staff at the hospital near his home in Joplin, Mo., suggested sending him by ambulance to Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, which had treated two patients with similar symptoms. That hospital sent him straight to intensive care. Within a few days, Billy was unable to move his legs or raise his head.