The CDC Flagged Mystery Cases Of Liver Damage In Kids & It's Happening In Several Countries

The CDC has issued a nationwide health alert about hepatitis of "unknown" origin among kids, after several were found to have severe liver damage in the U.S. and other countries.

The CDC says it's seen a few small clusters of children with liver damage caused by hepatitis and adenovirus infections since last October. All of the children were healthy before infection, and "none had COVID-19."

Health care workers are being told "to report any suspected cases of hepatitis of unknown origin to their local and state health departments," according to the CDC statement.

Dozens of mysterious cases have been reported so far in the U.S., U.K., Denmark, Spain and the Netherlands, according to European health officials. The World Health Organization says it's recorded 74 cases in the U.K. alone.

More than a dozen cases have also been identified in Alabama and North Carolina, reported NBC Chicago.

The WHO says it's affecting kids 10 and younger. No deaths have been reported so far but some children have needed liver transplants.

Symptoms include jaundice, diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain, according to the WHO.

"Given the increase in cases reported over the past one month and enhanced case search activities, more cases are likely to be reported in the coming days," the WHO said.

In all recorded cases across the globe, laboratory results show that none of the patients were positive for Hepatitis A, B, C, E and D, which means the origins of the disease are still unknown.

The youngest case detected in the U.K. was 11 months.

"Member States are strongly encouraged to identify, investigate and report potential cases fitting the case definition," the WHO said.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.