Severe Hepatitis In Children: What Colorado Parents Need To Know

COLORADO — Although Colorado is not among the 10 states reporting confirmed cases, there has been a mysterious outbreak of severe hepatitis — or inflammation of the liver — among children across the country.

The 10 states reporting this type of pediatric liver inflammation are Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee and Wisconsin, where one child died.

Some 200 children, ranging in age from 1 month to 16 years, have suddenly become ill with severe hepatitis. Most cases are in Europe, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a nationwide health alert late last month urging pediatricians to test children for adenovirus infections.

The presence of an adenovirus infection among patients with hepatitis is a common link in outbreaks that have so far flummoxed both U.S. and European health officials. There appears to be no epidemiological link among cases, researchers have said.

• Related: CDC Issues Alert After Several Kids Develop Severe Hepatitis

Cold-like symptoms typically accompany adenovirus infections, but the virus has never been known to cause hepatitis, according to the CDC. These types of infections typically run their course, with no specific treatment recommended.

In November 2021, five children undergoing treatment for hepatitis at a large children’s hospital — three of them with acute liver failure — tested positive for adenovirus infections, which can cause cold-like symptoms among people of any age. Another four cases of children with both hepatitis and adenovirus infections were subsequently discovered. None of the patients died, but two required liver transplants.