As of April 21, at least 169 cases of unexplained acute hepatitis in children had been reported in 11 countries in Europe and the United States, including 114 in the United Kingdom, according to a World Health Organization notification on April 23. Of these cases, 1 child has died and 17 require liver transplantation. On April 25, Japan's Ministry of Health and Welfare also held a press conference to announce the emergence of a suspected case in Japan. This can't help but make people a little worried - what is the disease? Will it be contagious? Is it related to COVID-19?
Figureworm creative
Because of the involvement of children and the dangerous condition, coupled with the new crown epidemic, this "unexplained acute hepatitis" looks confusing. In order to avoid unnecessary anxiety and speculation, around the issues that everyone is most concerned about, Scientific Rumors has sorted out the relevant information as of April 26, hoping to help everyone correctly understand the hepatitis this time.
01
The only thing that can be determined
At present, the WHO believes that there is no evidence that this "unexplained acute hepatitis" is related to the injection of the new crown vaccine
Some media have speculated that this hepatitis may be related to vaccines, but in fact, according to WHO statistics, the vast majority of children have not been injected with any type of new crown vaccine because of their age. Therefore, the WHO believes that there is currently no evidence that the disease is associated with vaccinations.
Figureworm creative
In addition, in 2021, many countries have approved the vaccination of children and adolescents of the right age group, and the mainland has also started the new crown vaccination of children aged 3-17 years in the second half of 2021, and there have been no similar diseases reported.
02
Something that needs further study
What causes this disease?
The specific cause of the disease has not yet been determined, but the medical community tends to believe that the culprit of this unknown hepatitis is adenovirus.
According to the WHO, at least 75 of the 169 cases this time were detected with adenovirus. And in the UK (114 cases), there has also been a recent increase in adenovirus infection. However, this hypothesis is difficult to explain the absence of cases of adenovirus infection, and adenovirus-induced hepatitis is also rare.
Figureworm creative
Therefore, some researchers have proposed other conjectures, including children's reduced resistance to adenoviruses, the emergence of new adenoviruses, etc., but they lack sufficient evidence.
In short, the specific causes still need to be studied in depth.
Is this disease a sequelae of covid-19 infection?
The likelihood is low and further research is still needed.
Because according to the WHO report, only 20 of the current 164 children tested positive for COVID-19, and 19 of them were also infected with both the new crown virus and the adenovirus.
Is this disease contagious?
Not sure yet.
Infectious diseases must have three elements, namely the source of infection, the route of transmission and susceptible populations, but the pathogen that causes the disease has not yet been determined, and there is a lack of corresponding epidemiological investigation, and it is not yet possible to determine whether it is infected and how it is transmitted.
What can children do to prevent it?
Figureworm creative
Although the cause of the disease has not yet been determined, and whether it is contagious, if the disease is caused by a pathogen, it is helpful to teach children to wash their hands using the 7-step handwashing method and wear a mask correctly for protection (as well as against the new crown virus), given the commonality of easily transmitted pathogens.
Audit | Jin Dong is an associate researcher at the Institute of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Editor-in-charge | Ding Song
You might want to see it
▽