There are just some things you can’t explain. The rising cases of acute hepatitis in kids is one of them. In the U.S. about 109 cases have been reported as of Friday May 6, 2022. The median age of the children is 2 and none over age 10. They’ve all tested negative for the routine testable Hepatitis viruses. However 70% have tested positive for adenovirus which is usually a GI virus causing diarrhea. There has been no correlation with COVID or COVID vaccines.

Thankfully, full recovery is the main outcome. Yet 5 children have died and 14%, roughly 15 children, have needed emergent liver transplant to stave off death.

It is scary having children that are in that age range. Not knowing when where or why they were infected with such a serious potentially life threatening illness. We don’t know what to avoid. We don’t know what precautions to take. So the advice is to be on the lookout. It won’t be hard, these kids are sick. They will not want to get out of bed and they will turn yellow in their eyes and skin. Take them immediately to the hospital. We should be sure that our kids are vaccinated against the routine hepatitis viruses.

Let’s hope whatever it is, it goes away as stealthily as it came.