Hepatitis: Public Health Investigators are Puzzled with Severe Cases Affecting Children in the US, the UK, and Europe

Dozens of cases of severe hepatitis from several countries are believed to be connected.

Hepatitis has affected millions of people worldwide and is a common disease in the liver which may pose moderate to lethal health hazards.

In a new article, public health investigators discover the mysterious origins of hepatitis cases in the US, UK, and across Europe.

Unknown Source

(Photo : Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

Investigators found dozens of children with severe hepatitis from several locations such as nine in Alabama, three in Spain, and 74 in the UK.

Unconfirmed yet a leading theory suggests that the disease may have been caused by an adenovirus, as cited by WebMD.

Adenovirus is reportedly a family of viruses responsible for causing the common cold. It is being looked at by authorities as being the culprit behind the cases in Alabama and the UK.

Details of the incidents came out on Science on April 15, indicating that clinicians in Denmark and the Netherlands are also reporting related cases.

As precautionary measures, the CDC led the investigation in Alabama to determine the root cause of the illness, with the source remains to be unknown until now.

Also Read: Hepatitis A: Seals Have Closest-Related Virus to HepA

What is Hepatitis?

The CDC states that viral hepatitis pertains to the inflammation of the liver, a vital organ responsible for processing nutrients when the body intakes food and liquid, as well as filtering the blood from toxins and fighting infection.

However, a damaged liver means it is unable to process these biological compounds.

As a result, the infected individual will experience the following symptoms, including abdominal pain, dark urine, fever, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, joint pain, and others.

The disease can be classified into three categories, according to the CDC:

Hepatitis A - relatively short-lived compared to the other categories. It can last from a couple of weeks to several months. A person can contract hepatitis A through ingestion of fecal matter.
Hepatitis B - can range from a few weeks to a lifelong chronic condition. An individual can acquire this hepatitis category through the transfer of blood, semen, and other body fluids from a person with hepatitis B.
Hepatitis C - its duration and severity are somehow similar to hepatitis B. Yet, most people infected with hepatitis C develop a chronic condition. Furthermore, a person can acquire this through the entry of infected blood or birth from an infected mother.

In the United States, the CDC estimates that 24,900 people are infected each year with hepatitis A.

Meanwhile, 22,600 new infections were recorded back in 2018, with around 862,000 individuals living with hepatitis B in the US.

Furthermore, about 50,300 new cases of hepatitis C were reported in 2018, with 2.4 million people living with the medical condition in the country.

Other Causes and Diagnosis

Additional triggers of hepatitis can be excessive alcohol consumption and intake of other toxins.

Moreover, a defect in the autoimmune system response may mistake the liver as a harmful entity and may attack it, according to Healthline.

Diagnosis of hepatitis is similar to other diseases and health conditions. Healthline provided the following medical procedures and tests to determine if a person has an inflamed liver: