Mary Wilson
Well-known member
Technical briefing 3
19 May 2022
Introduction
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is working with the National Health Service (NHS) and the public health agencies of the 4 nations of the United Kingdom (UK) to investigate the potential cause of an unusually high number of acute hepatitis cases being seen in children in the past few weeks. There is no known association with travel, and hepatitis viruses (A to E) have not been detected in these children.
Unless otherwise stated this technical briefing uses data cut-off of 16 May 2022 to allow time for analyses. More recent case numbers may be cited in other UKHSA public updates but are not included in the analyses presented here. The 4 UK nations are conducting a coordinated investigation and data continues to be reconciled across the UK. For this reason, summary epidemiology data is presented for all 4 nations, whilst some detailed analyses can only be presented for single countries at present.
Summary
This briefing is produced to share data useful to other public health investigators and academic partners undertaking related work. Although a detailed clinical case review is also taking place, that data is not shared here as, given the small number of cases, there are some risks to confidentiality.
Cases
As of 16 May 2022, there have been 197 cases of acute non-A-E hepatitis with serum transaminases greater than 500 IU/l identified in children aged under 16 years old in the UK since 1 January 2022. This is the result of an active case finding investigation commencing in April which identified retrospective as well as prospective cases. Eleven cases have received a liver transplant; no cases resident in the UK have died.
New cases continue to be identified across the UK, including cases that meet the case definition and reported cases that are pending classification. Potential reporting lags mean that the rate of new cases is uncertain, though the current rate is more consistent with plateauing than exponential growth. Cases pending classification are usually those in which laboratory testing to rule out known causes of hepatitis has not been completed. ...
https://assets.publishing.service.g...ute-hepatitis-technical-briefing_3.pdf#page10
19 May 2022
Introduction
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is working with the National Health Service (NHS) and the public health agencies of the 4 nations of the United Kingdom (UK) to investigate the potential cause of an unusually high number of acute hepatitis cases being seen in children in the past few weeks. There is no known association with travel, and hepatitis viruses (A to E) have not been detected in these children.
Unless otherwise stated this technical briefing uses data cut-off of 16 May 2022 to allow time for analyses. More recent case numbers may be cited in other UKHSA public updates but are not included in the analyses presented here. The 4 UK nations are conducting a coordinated investigation and data continues to be reconciled across the UK. For this reason, summary epidemiology data is presented for all 4 nations, whilst some detailed analyses can only be presented for single countries at present.
Summary
This briefing is produced to share data useful to other public health investigators and academic partners undertaking related work. Although a detailed clinical case review is also taking place, that data is not shared here as, given the small number of cases, there are some risks to confidentiality.
Cases
As of 16 May 2022, there have been 197 cases of acute non-A-E hepatitis with serum transaminases greater than 500 IU/l identified in children aged under 16 years old in the UK since 1 January 2022. This is the result of an active case finding investigation commencing in April which identified retrospective as well as prospective cases. Eleven cases have received a liver transplant; no cases resident in the UK have died.
New cases continue to be identified across the UK, including cases that meet the case definition and reported cases that are pending classification. Potential reporting lags mean that the rate of new cases is uncertain, though the current rate is more consistent with plateauing than exponential growth. Cases pending classification are usually those in which laboratory testing to rule out known causes of hepatitis has not been completed. ...
https://assets.publishing.service.g...ute-hepatitis-technical-briefing_3.pdf#page10
