What is childhood hepatitis?Mysterious outbreaks in the U.S. are worried about health authorities

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating more than 100 cases of severe hepatitis in children, including five deaths, the agency said. Results of hepatitis Inflammation of the liver that can damage liver cells.

According to the Xinhua News Agency, the incident under investigation was found in 25 states and territories in the United States and has occurred in the last seven months.

According to the CDC, more than 90% of children were hospitalized and 14% needed a liver transplant. More than half of the children have confirmed adenovirus infection.

The cause of these cases in young children is not yet clear.

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Jay Butler, Deputy Director of Infectious Diseases at the CDC, told reporters that some of the common causes of viral hepatitis were considered, but none were found.

According to the CDC, adenovirus has been detected in more than 50% of these cases, but has not been identified as the actual cause.

From October 2021 to February 2022, nine children with severe hepatitis were reported in Alabama, and seven girls and two boys were reported at ages from 1 month to 6 years.

These cases were the first to draw attention to liver disease in children in the United States.

On April 21, the CDC issued a national health warning informing clinicians and public health authorities about a population of children with confirmed hepatitis and adenovirus infections.

Authorities urged all physicians to pay attention to their symptoms and report suspected cases of unexplained hepatitis to local and state health departments.

Since then, the state health department has worked with state pediatricians to identify possible cases.

The CDC stated that adenovirus may be the cause of reported cases, but other potential environmental and contextual factors are still under investigation.

According to the CDC, the case group suggests that adenovirus should be considered in the differential diagnosis of unexplained acute hepatitis, along with cases that may have recently been identified in Europe.

Adenovirus type 41 spreads primarily through the fecal-oral route and mainly affects the intestines. According to the CDC, this is a common cause of acute pediatric gastroenteritis, typically with diarrhea, vomiting, and fever, often with respiratory symptoms.

According to the CDC, adenovirus is recognized as the cause of hepatitis in children with weakened immunity and may be the “unrecognized” cause of liver damage in healthy children.

On May 1, the World Health Organization reported at least 228 possible cases of unexplained hepatitis in children in 20 countries, and dozens more are under investigation.