Expect two cases of mysterious hepatitis in children to be confirmed in Bulgaria
Two new suspicious samples for unspecified acute hepatitis in children are being tested at the National Center for Infectious and Parasitic Diseases, and the presence of the virus is expected to be confirmed. This is the Chief State Health Inspector Angel Kunchev BNT.
One of the cases is from Sofia and the other from Plovdiv.
“There were four samples, very close to the definition of the virus. Two dropped out. There are two left, which we will probably confirm if everything goes in that direction,” Kunchev said.
Health authorities are currently collecting information from GPs on all incidents. The samples are tested at the National Reference Laboratory. Angel Kunchev said that suspects will be tested ahead of time, in an attempt to find the cause of unspecified hepatitis.
“It’s a hepatitis that we don’t know what caused it. We certainly can’t say how it is transmitted or who causes it.” – Kunchev’s request.
About 300 cases of acute unspecified hepatitis in children have been reported worldwide. There are 253 registered cases in the EU.
What is known about the new hepatitis
These are cases of pre-healthy children, aged 2 to 5 years, who are hospitalized due to the treatment of acute hepatitis (inflammation of the liver) – jaundice (74%), recovery (73%), white stools (58%) ), diarrhea (49%), nausea (39%) and fever (29%); and severely elevated liver enzymes – ALT and AST (> 500 IU / L). In some cases, gastrointestinal examinations were present in the weeks before hospitalization. A total of 8 reported cases developed from all requiring liver transplantation. New hepatitis has been detected in 12 countries.
The cause has not been identified yet, but it is believed that this is a contagious inquiry.
So far, sustainable research has shown:
– there is no clear epidemic link between the cases;
– no common source of infection has been identified;
– laboratory tests for hepatitis A, B, C, D and E are negative;
– in a significant part of the disease is isolated adenovirus, which is considered the most likely cause;
– some of the patients have a positive result for SARS-CoV-2 or data for COVID-19;
– no food or toxic agent has been identified as a probable cause.
COVID-19 still cannot be equated with the flu epidemic
Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, Angel Kunchev said that the time has not yet come when it can be equated with the flu epidemic. According to the Chief State Health Inspector, Bulgarians should not rely on the development of collective immunity, because there are still many people in our country who do not face the disease or are vaccinated.
Show Kunchev no one can predict how and whether the pandemic will develop in the fall. Meanwhile, however, restrictions in Europe have eased significantly over the summer. As of tomorrow, the requirement to wear a mask during a flight in the lower union.