Meanwhile, the WHO said on Tuesday that 348 cases of the unknown disease had been reported in 20 countries. More than 160 of these have been reported in the UK alone. 70 cases from 13 countries have not yet been finally classified. So the leading hypothesis for the cause is adenoviruses.
Hepatitis is a rare form of hepatitis in healthy children. Recently, the number of mysterious hepatitis cases in children has increased worldwide. The WHO was first notified of cases of unexplained hepatitis in Scotland in early April. According to the United States, it is now investigating more than a hundred cases in which five children died. In some cases, liver transplant surgery may be necessary.
Philippa Easterbrook of the WHO’s Global Hepatitis Program said there had been some significant progress in the investigation of cases and possible causes over the past week. “Currently, the leading hypotheses are that adenoviruses are involved – whether the role of the goitre, co-infection or previous infection, still plays an important role.”
A further test conducted last week confirmed that approximately 70 percent of hepatitis patients tested positive for adenovirus, with subtype 41 – commonly associated with gastroenteritis – being the major subtype. Tests also show that about 18 percent of cases test positive for Covit-19.
With the help of new data from Great Britain, researchers now want to clarify whether adeno is an accidentally discovered infection or a causal link, Easterbrook said. Previous studies have not shown any of the expected common features in hepatitis caused by adenovirus.
Adenoviruses are common viruses that cause only mild illness. There are more than 50 types of these viruses, which are spread by droplet infection. Most of these germs cause the common cold, but some also trigger other symptoms. (STA)
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