Health officials are investigating whether dogs are behind the increase in hepatitis in children, it became clear.
The UK’s Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said on Friday that the number of cases of sudden hepatitis had jumped from 18 last week to 163, including 11 children who had had a liver transplant after their organs were removed. were severely damaged.
Unexplained hepatitis – or inflammation of the liver – is rare in children and cases have caused concern around the world.
Health officials said the adenovirus, usually a mild viral infection that causes the common cold, remains the main theory. But the report added that a “relatively large number” of affected children – 70% of the 93 respondents – either came from families with dogs or had some other “exposure” to pets before they became ill.
“The significance of this discovery is being studied,” officials wrote.
However, they noted that the presence of a dog is “common in the UK” and has “limited data on background levels of pet ownership in young children’s families”, making it difficult to assess the importance of the data.
The Telegraph understands that health officials are not convinced that the link is strong, but believes it is too early to rule out any potential hypothesis given the results of the study.
“There is no reasonable link between pets and hepatitis”
Prof. Francois Balu, director of the Institute of Genetics at University College London, added that he could not come up with “any reasonable explanation” for the link between dog exposure and hepatitis in children.
“Dogs carry their own adenoviruses, including CAV-1, a dog liver pathogen, but there is no preliminary evidence that CAV-1 can infect humans,” he told The Telegraph.
Dr. Megan Cal, an epidemiologist at UKHSA, said on Twitter that the theory seemed “thoughtful.”
The report comes after the World Health Organization said about 300 cases had been reported in at least 20 countries.
While most are in Europe, a small number have been identified in North and South America, the western Pacific and Southeast Asia – including three deaths this week in Indonesia, bringing the total to four.
Currently, the leading theory is that the cases are related to adenovirus, with 72% of children tested for the pathogen in the United Kingdom tested positive.
Blocking can be a factor
But the UKHSA said other factors were likely to exacerbate the infection.
One theory is that blocking Covid-19 may have weakened children’s immunity because they were less exposed to common pathogens while in isolation, or that the virus acts in tandem with another infection.
This may include Sars-Cov-2. So far, 14% of children affected across the UK have recently tested positive for Covid, and researchers do not rule out the possibility of hepatitis as a result of infection.
Another possibility is that there is an “extremely large wave of normal adenoviral infections”, which means that very rare complications are more common, or that this is a new adenoviral variant.
Dr Meera Chand, director of clinical and emerging infections at UKHSA, on Friday urged parents to watch out for hepatitis symptoms. The most common symptom – found in more than 70 percent of children – is jaundice, while vomiting and pale stools are also prevalent.
“It’s important for parents to know that their child is extremely unlikely to develop hepatitis,” she said. “However, we continue to remind everyone to be vigilant about the signs of hepatitis – especially jaundice, look for a yellow tint in the whites of the eyes – and contact your doctor if you are concerned.
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