The first four cases of acute childhood hepatitis in Mexico have been detected in the state of Nuevo León, as reported on Thursday by the state Health Secretariat. The patients are stable and remain under continuous medical surveillance to monitor their evolution.
“We have received the report of four patients in our different public and private institutions. So far, all stable. They are children of different ages”, explained the head of the unit, Ana Rosa Marroquín Escamilla, at a press.
The official has not given more details about the state of health of the minors but has assured that they are being carefully watched.
“We are monitoring them and later we will be able to share the most accurate information”. Marroquín has pointed out that it is still not known what causes this disease, which has already left several probable cases in the world.
“There are different theories and in a percentage of cases, a little less than 30%, a respiratory virus has been isolated in parallel, which is called adenovirus 41”, she has explained. “We still do not have the certainty that this is the agent that is causing the inflammation of the liver,” she pointed out.
Although the causes of acute childhood hepatitis are unknown, it is mainly being reported in children under 16 years of age, the official highlighted.
“That is why it is very important that we are alert to any sign or symptom that may lead us to suspect that the child may develop hepatitis,” she indicated. “Children with hepatitis develop, associated with diarrhea and vomiting, abdominal pain, and yellowish discoloration of both the skin and mucous membranes. The conjunctiva of the eyes looks a little yellow and on the skin, it also looks yellow”, she has described.
This mysterious disease has left at least 348 probable cases in the world and another 70 waiting to be classified, according to the latest report from the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday. Cases continue to rise after 228 possible infections were registered a week ago, in addition to three deaths.
The WHO has warned since May 2 that the increase in cases of acute childhood hepatitis of unknown origin is a “very urgent” issue. According to the international organization, the disease has spread in 20 countries and possible infections are being investigated in another 13, after the first 10 cases were reported in the United Kingdom on April 5.
