Medical puzzle: In several countries children are suffering from hepatitis, apparently one child is also affected in Germany. The cause of the disease was previously unclear – but: British researchers now have a first well-founded suspicion of what could be behind the mysterious liver inflammation.
According to the WHO, as of April 21, at least 169 children in 11 countries had contracted hepatitis of unknown origin. Among others in Spain, Israel, the USA and France. Most cases, 114 in total, were in Great Britain. A few children even had to undergo liver transplants.
A child also fell ill in Germany. The disease began in January, writes the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in a publication on Tuesday evening. No further details were given. The RKI writes that there are no further indications of cases or clusters in Germany from specialist societies and children’s hospitals.
What is particularly mysterious about the diseases: the typical triggers, the hepatitis viruses A to E, were not found. Adenoviruses were detected in most children.
Mysterious hepatitis affects children all over the world
For researchers from Great Britain who took on the medical puzzle, these common viruses are the most likely cause, according to the RKI report. The pathogen usually leads to mild illness, for example with cold-like symptoms, vomiting and diarrhea.
However, liver inflammation is “a known rare complication” that mostly affects immunocompromised people. According to the report, a new variant that causes the clinical picture could be circulating in the cases in Great Britain. Due to pandemic effects, younger children in particular could be particularly susceptible, it said.
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The RKI experts find it difficult to classify the number of cases known to date in the EU. Although individual countries reported more affected children than expected, increased attention could also play a major role. The case definition is also not very specific. It may be possible to show in retrospect that some cases are not part of the outbreak after all.
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All in all, a few more weeks of patience are required until the results of various studies are available, said the board member of the German Liver Foundation, Christoph Sarrazin, on request. (alp/dpa)
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