Seven more cases of severe hepatitis have been detected in California and a child has died in Wisconsin as the mysterious disease spreads across the country.
The California Department of Health said it discovered the cases in “small” children, all of whom have become ill since October.
This brings the number of suspected hepatitis cases in the US to 27, with the disease now being sighted in seven states – mostly east of the Mississippi River.
Wisconsin is the only state reporting a suspected death of a child from hepatitis. If confirmed, it will be the first in the country and the second worldwide. State officials confirmed to that the child developed the disease after being infected with the adenovirus.
Cases of the peculiar disease have already been discovered in Alabama, North Carolina and Delaware. Health chiefs in Illinois and New York are currently investigating reports of similar incidents.
The cause of the mysterious disease remains a “mystery,” says Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical officer to President Joe Biden.
However, experts have raised concerns that lockdowns, which weaken immunity in children, or even Covid infections, could be to blame.
Almost 200 children are suffering from this disease in up to 14 countries worldwide. At least 18 have required a liver transplant.
Almost 200 children have contracted the disease in as many as 14 countries worldwide since last October * Cases in Canada, Japan and Wisconsin, Illinois and New York have yet to be confirmed
dr Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, said the cause of the disease “still remains a mystery.”
California’s Department of Health and Human Services said it’s unclear whether the adenovirus — which typically causes the common cold — is behind the illnesses or if the cases are linked.
Medical professionals have been confused as to what is behind the spate of cases – with the common hepatitis A, B, C, D and E viruses excluded from the lab test results.
Health chiefs believe the disease could be triggered by an adenovirus, which normally causes the common cold.
dr Fauci told Bloomberg, “It’s still a mystery. It seems to be related to the adenovirus, but it’s not a bull’s eye.’
Alabama became the first state to report severe liver damage two weeks ago.
Nine children were hospitalized in the state between November and February.
Three had acute liver failure and all children tested came back positive for adenovirus.
Two required liver transplants, but all survived.
North Carolina identified two cases last month in which both children recovered. Neither had adenovirus.
Delaware reported this week that a child under the age of five was hospitalized with the same mysterious hepatitis. You are still being treated.
A child has now been confirmed dead in Wisconsin and officials said they are investigating whether her liver injury has been linked to the same cluster of cases.
The Wisconsin DHS said, “Since receiving notification of this cluster of adenovirus-associated hepatitis, the DHS is now investigating at least four similar cases in children in Wisconsin.
“These include two children with serious consequences, a liver transplant and one death.”
Both the child who died and the child who needed a liver transplant were infected with the adenovirus.
Illinois officials said they discovered three probable cases of severe hepatitis Monday and one child needs a liver transplant.
dr Tina Tan, a pediatric infectious diseases doctor at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, said the cases are most likely caused by a virus because they occur in clusters.
She told Bloomberg, “The most unusual thing about all of this is that adenovirus doesn’t usually cause severe hepatitis in children with no underlying health problems.”
And health officials in New York state announced yesterday that they are investigating a case that appears to match descriptions of the mystery illness.
The condition, first detected in Scotland at the end of March, has been identified 114 times in the UK.
Experts claim Covid lockdowns may be behind the mysterious spate of childhood hepatitis cases by reducing social mixing and weakening their immunity
Investigations are ongoing, but officials have yet to rule out that a new Covid variant is to blame.
Another theory suggests that children may have been battling adenovirus at the same time as Covid.
UK health officials have ruled out the Covid vaccine as a possible cause as none of the sick UK children were vaccinated given their young age.
Liver experts called the spate of cases “worrying” but said parents shouldn’t worry about the disease affecting their children.
Questions and Answers: What is the mysterious global hepatitis outbreak and what is behind it?
What do we know about the global hepatitis outbreak?
Scientists are puzzled by a worldwide outbreak of hepatitis that has caused two deaths and over a dozen liver transplants.
Inflammatory liver disease has been identified in at least 169 children aged between one month and 16 years.
None of the cases were caused by any of the five typical strains of the virus – hepatitis A, B, C, D and E.
What is hepatitis?
Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver, usually caused by a viral infection or liver damage from alcohol consumption.
Hepatitis often has no noticeable symptoms — but they can include dark urine, light gray stools, itchy skin, and yellowing of the eyes and skin.
Infected people may also experience muscle and joint pain, fever, nausea, and constant unusual tiredness.
When hepatitis is transmitted by a virus, it is usually caused by eating food and drink contaminated with an infected person’s feces or by blood-to-blood or sexual contact.
In how many countries have cases been registered?
United Kingdom
US*
Spain
Israel
Denmark
Ireland
The Netherlands
Italy
France
Norway
Romania
Belgium
Japan*
Canada*
114
20
13
12
six
Less than five
Four
Four
Two
Two
A
A
A
Unspecified number
*Cases in Canada, Japan and Illinois, USA, are yet to be confirmed
Do we know what’s behind the outbreak?
co-infection
Experts say the cases may be linked to a virus commonly associated with the common cold, but further research is ongoing.
In combination with Covid infections, this could lead to an increase in some cases.
The adenovirus reported by the WHO was detected in at least 74 of the cases. At least 20 of the children have tested positive for the coronavirus.
weakened immunity
British experts tasked with investigating the wave of the disease believe the endless cycle of lockdowns may have played a role.
Restrictions may have weakened children’s immunity due to less social mixing, putting them at increased risk of adenovirus.
Public Health Scotland researchers said more children could be “immunologically naïve” to the virus due to restrictions.
adenovirus mutation
Other scientists said it could have been a virus that acquired “unusual mutations”.
This would mean that it is more transmissible or better able to bypass children’s natural immunity.
New Covid variant
UKHSA officials included “a new variant of SARS-CoV-2” in their working hypotheses as they discussed the variant at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in Lisbon.
Other theories
The UKHSA has noted that Covid, as well as other infections and environmental triggers, are still under investigation as possible causes of the diseases.
The agency ruled out the Covid vaccine as a possible cause as none of the UK cases have so far been vaccinated because of their age.