The Ministry of Health was made aware of a case of acute hepatitis without a known cause in a 10-month-old baby boy who was brought to the KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital Emergency Department on 25 April.
The boy was admitted for further investigations and both the child and his household contacts are currently well.
MOH said in a statement yesterday that they are investigating the case to see if it has a similar presentation to the cases of acute hepatitis of unknown cause that have been reported internationally and by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
MOH added that the bay boy was Covid positive last December, but there isn’t evidence to show that the acute hepatitis is related to the coronavirus.
A spokesperson for MOH said that laboratory tests have determined that the case is negative for the common viruses that cause hepatitis, and that they are monitoring the situation closely and all medical practitioners have been informed to be vigilant to young children presenting signs and symptoms of hepatitis for which a cause cannot be identified.
MOH further added that so far, there have been more than 200 suspected cases of acute hepatitis of unknown cause in kids across 17 counts, with cases being reported in the US, the UK, Spain, Canada, and Japan.
They added that acute hepatitis can be caused by a myriad of factors, including viral infections, use of alcohol, medications, toxins, and some medical conditions.
But these cases of acute hepatitis in children globally are unknown, with initial investigations suggesting that they may be related to adenovirus infection, which is a common virus that usually caused respiratory or gastrointestinal problems, but it isn’t typically known to cause hepatitis in children who are otherwise healthy.
MOH also urged parents to be alert to the signs of hepatitis and to seek early medical attention if the symptoms are present.
The symptoms include dark urine, feces that are pale and grey in color, jaundice, itchiness in the skin, muscle and/or joint pain, fever, vomiting, loss of appetite and lethargy.