Globally, about 450 children have been infected with mysterious acute hepatitis, while 12 have lost their lives, according to the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDPC).
Liver disease was first reported in the UK in April, with 12 deaths reported from Indonesia (5), Palestine (1), USA (5) and Ireland (1). The highest number of cases have been reported from the UK (176) and the US (110), the other 100 are from European countries, including Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands , Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.
Last week, UKHSA said a ‘high’ number of British children with hepatitis were from families with dogs. “
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 21 countries have now detected ‘severe hepatitis of unknown cause’ in children, mostly under the age of 10, since the beginning of April. At least 26 young men have received liver transplants.
Although the reason for this has not been determined so far, adenoviruses – a common family of infections that cause illnesses ranging from colds to eye infections – are suspected to be the cause. Of the 176 cases in the UK, around 126 were tested for adenovirus, of which 91 were found to have adenovirus (72%). Among the cases, adenovirus was mainly detected in the blood.
Hepatitis in children
But the ECDPC in a statement said: “Other hypotheses and possible co-factors are under investigation. Most cases continue to be reported as unconnected sporadic cases.”
However, adenovirus is only detected in blood or plasma samples in many cases, and also when viral loads are low.
So even the WHO notes that because “adenovirus has not yet been identified in the analyzed liver tissue samples and therefore could be a coincidence rather than a causal factor”.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also detected SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19 disease, in 24 of the 132 positive cases (18%).
The agency noted that it is “in the process of serological testing for SARS-CoV-2”.
In a strange turn of events last week, chief medical officers in the UK also investigated whether ‘contact with dogs’ was to blame, the Guardian reported.
However, officials did not explain how the dogs might be able to cause the error, but they are known carriers of adenovirus strains, the report said.
Source: IANS
