By Erika EdwardsNBC
News
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday that they are investigating the deaths of five children, related to the growing number of mysterious cases of pediatric hepatitis across the country.
The agency is investigating 109 cases in 24 states and Puerto Rico, said Dr. Jay Butler, deputy director for infectious diseases at the CDC, during a media briefing.
The cases date back to October 2021.
File image of a boy and his mother.Getty Images
The latest patient count marks a sharp increase from two weeks ago, when only eleven such cases had been identified.
This prompted the CDC to issue a health alert for doctors across the country to be on the lookout for rare cases of hepatitis, or inflammation of the liver, in children with no obvious cause.
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Butler said that of the 109 cases now under investigation, the vast majority have required hospitalization, with eight requiring a liver transplant.
All were previously healthy, with no underlying conditions.
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In addition to the latest CDC report, at least 228 cases have been recorded in 20 countries, according to the World Health Organization.
No cause has been found that relates all cases.
"Investigators, both here and around the world, are working hard to determine the cause
," Butler said.
Adenovirus infection has been detected in approximately half of US pediatric patients, although researchers have not yet determined if this is the cause of these cases of hepatitis.
Adenovirus type of infections are not uncommon in children and typically cause a range of symptoms, from colds to vomiting and diarrhoea.
But severe adenovirus-related hepatitis is rare, and usually occurs only in children with chronic illnesses.
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The usual causes of hepatitis have been ruled out: hepatitis A through E viruses.
Children are not testing positive for COVID-19, and most are too young to have received coronavirus vaccines.
Many of the new cases of hepatitis have had symptoms such as vomiting, dark urine, and jaundice, or yellowing of the eyes and skin.
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