At least 228 probable cases of severe hepatitis in children have been reported across 20 countries worldwide, according to the World Health Organization on May 4. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating 109 cases of pediatric hepatitis of unknown cause, the public health agency announced May 6.
As clinicians, epidemiologists, and other experts search for answers on what is causing serious liver inflammation in affected kids and how to prevent it, it might help to start with what can be ruled out.
For one, researchers agree that hepatitis A, B, C, D, or E — viruses that more commonly cause acute hepatitis — are not to blame in these cases. Nor are these cases definitively linked to SARS-CoV-2 infection, at least not so far, and there also is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccination is to blame.
For example, in an April 29 study in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), CDC investigators found no connection between COVID-19 and nine cases of hepatitis targeting children in Alabama. In a May 6 CDC media briefing, officials said they were not aware of any cases with documented COVID-19 infection; however, they are looking to see if any cases have antibodies pointing to previous infection.
