Children in many nations suffer mystery hepatitis cases of hepatitis of obscure origin, to begin with identified in UK children, have presently been recorded in four more European nations and US.
STOCKHOLM: Cases of hepatitis of obscure root, to begin with identified in UK children, have presently been recorded in four more European nations and the US, the EU health office said on Tuesday.
On Friday the World Health Organization said it was observing 84 cases of extreme intense hepatitis that were detailed in Britain since April 5.
And said it anticipated more cases within the coming days.
Cases have presently been recorded in children in Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said in an explanation on Tuesday.
Nine suspected cases have moreover been recorded within the US state of Alabama, it said.
“Investigations are ongoing in all countries reporting cases.
At present, the exact cause of hepatitis in these children remains unknown,” the ECDC said.
In most cases, the children did not have a fever.
But a few of the cases within the UK were so extreme that patients had to be exchanged to pro children’s liver units.
Whereas six children had liver transplants, both the WHO and ECDC have said.
The disease primarily influenced children aged beneath 10 and indications included jaundice, the runs, vomiting and abdominal pain.
The known hepatitis infections, from A to E, have not been identified within the children.
So British health authorities have inspected an interface to common infections.
Or other conceivable causes like Covid-19, diseases or environmental factors.
According to ECDC:
For the minute, investigators suspect that the likeliest cause is a disease, the ECDC said.
“No link to the COVID-19 vaccine was identified and detailed information collected through a questionnaire.
To cases about food, drink and personal habits failed to identify any common exposure,” the ECDC said.
In France “two cases of acute hepatitis whose etiology is still undetermined have been reported by the Lyon University Hospital” in children.
Under 10 years of age and “are currently being investigated”, the public health agency told AFP.
“Cases of acute hepatitis of undetermined etiology in children are not rare.
The occurrence of these two cases is not unexpected and does not indicate.
At this stage, an excess of cases in France,” the source added.
Meera Chand, director of clinical and emerging infections at the UK Health Security Agency, a public health protection body, said on Friday that:
“Normal hygiene measures” such as handwashing “help to reduce the spread of many of the infections that we are investigating”.