Health officials in many countries are investigating mysterious cases of severe liver disease in children and believe it may be related to a type of virus commonly associated with the common cold.
The United Kingdom has investigated at least 74 cases in which children have developed hepatitis or inflammation of the liver, the World Health Organization said on Friday. Three similar cases in Spain and some in Ireland are being investigated, the WHO said.
Meanwhile, U.S. health officials say they are considering nine similar cases. They were all in Alabama, but officials say they are looking to see if there are more.
“Given the increase in cases reported over the past month and the intensified case search activities, it is likely that more cases will be reported in the coming days,” WHO officials said in a statement.
U.S. children ranged in age from 1 to 6 years old and needed two liver transplants. European cases are in a similar age range, although some were higher, WHO officials said.
The WHO first became aware of the unusual diseases earlier this month when it learned of 10 children in Scotland with liver problems. One fell ill in January and the other nine in March. They all became seriously ill and were diagnosed with hepatitis after being taken to hospital.
The liver processes nutrients, filters the blood and fights infections. Infections caused symptoms such as jaundice, diarrhea and abdominal pain. Hepatitis can be life threatening if left untreated.
Since then, British health officials have identified at least 64 more cases. No one died, but six needed liver transplants, the WHO announced on Friday.
Laboratory tests ruled out hepatitis A, B, C and E viruses that usually cause such diseases. Officials say they are unaware of international travel or other factors that may have put the children at risk.
However, they noted that there has been a recent increase in the spread of adenoviruses.
There are dozens of adenoviruses, many of which are associated with cold-like symptoms, fever, sore throat and pink eye. But some versions can cause other problems, including inflammation of the stomach and intestines.
Adenoviruses have previously been linked to hepatitis in children, but mainly in children with weakened immune systems.
Some of the children in Europe tested positive for adenovirus and some tested positive for COVID-19. However, more laboratory work is needed to investigate possible correlations with specific viruses, the WHO said.
Alabama health officials say they have been examining the increase in hepatitis in children since November. In either case, the child tested positive for the adenovirus. Officials are investigating a link to a specific version – adenovirus 41 – that is commonly associated with intestinal inflammation.
None of the Alabama cases had underlying conditions that appeared to put them at risk for liver disease, health officials said.
“Adenovirus may be the cause at this time, but researchers are still learning more – including ruling out the most common causes of hepatitis,” the CDC said in a statement.
The United Kingdom is investigating the enigmatic increase in liver disease in children
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Reference: Mysterious liver disease seen in children in US, Europe (2022, April 16) recovered on 16 April 2022 from
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