A student at Cedar Place Elementary School in Yonkers tested positive for enterovirus D68.

District officials say that after they learned of the illness this past weekend, the school's custodial staff took extra care to sanitize the student's classroom and all common areas where he or she might have spent time. School officials are not identifying the child, who is currently not attending class. Parents received letters alerting them that a student at the school was diagnosed with the potentially deadly respiratory virus.

The Westchester County Health Department would not comment about specifics of the case, but they say children should return to school and that any sick child should follow the advice of their pediatrician. The health department says doctors are now testing for the virus, which they typically do not do unless there is a cluster of cases.

Enterovirus D68 has sickened hundreds of children across the country and been linked to several deaths. The Maria Fareri Children's Hospital at the Westchester Medical Center recently reported two dozen confirmed cases.

The enterovirus usually starts off like a common cold, with symptoms including a runny nose, fever, coughing and muscle aches, but it can be more problematic for children who suffer from respiratory problems such as asthma.

Parents say they are now taking extra precautions with their children. "I'm concerned because my son is asthmatic and has a heart condition, so he really cannot afford to get this," says Coleen Pichardo.