The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are looking into 109 strange hepatitis cases involving children.
There may be a connection between some sort of liver disease and the slew of recent hepatitis cases in children that have been identified in at least 25 states and territories in the U.S. ABC News reports the CDC says cases have emerged over the past seven months.
So far there have been five deaths related to hepatitis cases in the U.S., and most children have fully recovered from the illness. The World Health Organization ((WHO) is conducting its own investigation, saying it’s been seeing similar cases outside of the States.
Of the more than 90 percent of patients that are being looked into in the U.S., 14 percent of them have received liver transplants, ABC News reports. About more than half of the cases have included an adenovirus infection. While the rate of the cases is concerning, CDC officials say the cases are still uncommon.
“We know this update may be of concern especially to parents and guardians of young children,” said Dr. Jay Butler, deputy director for infectious diseases for the CDC ABC News reports.” It’s important to remember that severe hepatitis in children is rare, even with the potential increase in cases that we’re reporting today.”
Right now, officials are trying to find the causes of the multiple cases.
“Although rare, children can have serious hepatitis, and it’s not uncommon for the cause to be unknown. The 109 patients under investigation were identified as having been all within the past seven months. Not all the cases are recent, and some may of them may ultimately wind up not being linked to the current investigation,” said Butler, per ABC News.
