Why was the CDC health alert about the rare cluster of pediatric hepatitis cases an important announcement?
The first five hepatitis cases admitted in October 2021 to a children’s hospital in Alabama, showed significant liver injury, including some with liver failure. Since then, additional cases have been identified in other states, including in Alabama, and two in North Carolina.
There are a couple of things immediately unusual about these hepatitis cases.
Why would adenovirus infections, mostly known for “pink eye” or colds, cause significant liver injury in some children?
In addition to “pink eye,” aka conjunctivitis, adenoviruses can cause
As to why a virus can cause so many different manifestations of disease, the answer lies in the 68 different serotypes of adenoviruses that can infect humans.
Adenoviruses can often be recovered from tonsils or adenoids of healthy children.
After setting up an infection in people, adenoviruses will periodically replicate from their hideout in the throat and/or gut, and shed (release) newly created viruses, which can spread to other people.
Like many other respiratory viruses, including Influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2, adenoviruses can be spread
There are several viruses with the potential to affect human health.
What’s common to all viruses is the fact that they are strict parasites and essentially come to a halt if deprived of additional human bodies they can infect.
The last two years have certainly highlighted the varied ways in which we can engage in prevention, a key measure being adequate hand hygiene.
The images in this post are from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) website or created by me.