Children in US in danger of Pediatric Hepatitis, doctors warned

The warning has been issued by the Centre of Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) to all doctors to search for Hepatitis in Children. The lookout notice spells out to check for inflammation of the liver or related problems in children. Schools have also been served a lookout notice and teachers and parents have been made aware of the situation. Parents are encouraged to visit the nearest hospital to ascertain if their children could be carrying symptoms that point to the disease. An adenovirus is said to have partnered with another pathogen or virus or COVID-19 to inflict this fast-spreading disease on children in USA and Europe. 77% of children have tested positive for adenovirus in the UK. Actually, the first warnings of this hitherto unknown pediatric hepatitis disease had come from Alabama in October 2021, with UK alone reporting a whopping 108 cases. Some of the children showed very high levels of infection in the liver with severe inflammation and had to undergo transplants. This was indeed serious. Similar cases have also been reported in the Netherlands, Denmark, Ireland & Spain.

What is Adenovirus?

Adenovirus can cause serious illnesses in people with a weak immune system. People with cardiac problems or respiratory diseases could also land up with severe infections as a result. Most symptoms in children however are mild and include vomiting, common cold, or flu-like symptoms. Other symptoms are fever, sore throat, acute bronchitis (lung infections), pneumonia, conjunctivitis, and acute gastroenteritis (stomach or intestine inflammation-causing diarrhea, nausea, and stomach pain). Symptoms could also be appetite loss, abdominal pain, dark urine, light-coloured stools, joint pain, and jaundice. Doctors are also advised to check for symptoms that are not common but could be due to adenovirus like bladder inflammation or infection or neurological diseases affecting the brain and spinal cord.


Covid Vaccine ruled out

COVID vaccines have been ruled out as a cause of pediatric hepatitis in children. In other words, parents could be assured of the fact that the antivirus if already administered to the child, would not be a cause for worry.