sPublic health officials in the United States and Britain are investigating a number of unusual cases of serious hepatitis in young children, the cause or causes of which are currently unknown.
Evidence from the UK and Alabama – where nine cases have been recorded since last fall – suggests adenovirus may be involved. Adenovirus generally attacks the respiratory tract, causing illnesses such as colds. But they have been linked to cystitis, infection, and occasionally hepatitis, though they rarely affect non-immune-impaired children.
In a statement issued late Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was working with Alabama on the case investigation, and was working with other state health departments to see if there were other cases elsewhere. In a warning to doctors issued by the Alabama Department of Public Health in early February, it was aware of cases in other states, but did not provide details.
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“The CDC is aware of and working with the Alabama Department of Public Health to investigate nine cases of hepatitis in children — ages 1 to 6 — who also tested positive for adenovirus since October 2021,” said Kristen Nordlund, a spokeswoman for the CDC. In a statement.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working with state health departments to find out if there are other cases in the United States, and what might be causing them. Right now the adenovirus may be to blame, but researchers are still learning more — including ruling out the most common causes of hepatitis.
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Cases have been found in different parts of the state, and investigations so far have not found a link between the children, said Karen Landers, a medical officer at the Alabama Department of Public Health. British investigators also found no link between the cases there.
“It’s not uncommon to see children with acute hepatitis,” Landers, who has been a pediatrician for 45 years, told STAT in an interview. ‘Seeing children badly [hepatitis] In the absence of severe underlying health problems are very rare. That’s what really sets us apart in Alabama.”
There is a group of adenoviruses that can infect humans. Genetic sequencing is done to try to determine whether one or more types of adenovirus are involved. So far, five children have tested positive for type 41, Landers said.
As the word condition spreads, it is possible to find additional cases. El Pais newspaper I mentioned Wednesday The newspaper said Spain had detected three cases, all aged between 2 and 7 years. One of the children needed a liver transplant.
As in the UK, children in Alabama are terminally ill, says Helena Gutierrez, medical director of the Pediatric Liver Transplant Program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “We’ve seen a wide variety of cases ranging from acute hepatitis to acute liver failure,” he told STAT by email.
Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and president of the Association of State and Territory Health Officers, said the organization was aware of cases in the UK, but had not been notified of similar cases in the country. “We have contacted the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to find out more and also discuss how states can monitor such cases,” he said.
In the United Kingdom, where nearly 75 cases have been reported from England and Scotland, few children have ever had, or may need, a liver transplant.
A number of children in the UK have been tested for adenovirus and SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. But the former seems to be the prime suspect, according to A scientific material On Scottish issues published Thursday in the online journal Eurosurveillance.
However, even if the cause is adenovirus infection, there may be an epidemic link, the authors suggest, noting that young children – many cases are under five years old – who are not exposed to germs within the normal range during an epidemic may be more susceptible. When masks are removed and social distancing measures are lifted.
The authors, from Public Health Scotland, wrote, “At the time of publication, the main hypothesis has centered around the adenovirus – either a novel variant with a distinct clinical syndrome or a routinely prevalent variant that strongly affects immune-nave young children.” Royal Sick for Children in Glasgow, University of Glasgow’s Glasgow Center for Virus Research.
“The last scenario may be the result of limited social interaction during the Covid-19 pandemic,” they said. Five of the thirteen children described in the article tested positive for adenovirus.
Hepatitis – inflammation of the liver – is a condition that can be caused by a number of factors, although a viral infection is often the cause. A number of hepatitis viruses—A, B, C, D, and E—are common causes of hepatitis, but have been ruled out in this case.
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control issued Attention On Tuesday, he urged doctors to look for and report cases of acute hepatitis in children 16 years of age or younger, with testing ruling out hepatitis A, B, C, D or E.
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