Abstract
BackgroundHepatitis A is one of the most common infectious causes of acute hepatitis, and currently, a neglected global public health problem necessitating an urgent response in Somalia. Hepatitis A infection and its rare complication of acute liver failure in children are largely based on very limited data. The aim of the study was therefore to investigate the Hepatitis A infection and its rare complication of acute liver failure in children in Somalia.MethodsThis retrospective study was conducted on children aged 0–18 years who were admitted to the pediatric departments of the Somalia Mogadishu-Turkey Training and Research Hospital, Somali, from June 2019 and December 2019. Patients who were tested for hepatitis A infection during the study period and had complete data were included. Children with chronic disease, primary or secondary immunodeficiency, blood transfusion history, and missing data were excluded. ed data including patients' demographics, clinical presentation, laboratory results, ultrasonographic findings, length of hospital stay, clinical course and outcome were retrieved from the hospital database system.ResultsOf the 13,047 children, 219 were analyzed. Of the 219 Hepatitis A cases, 25 (11%) were diagnosed with pediatric acute liver failure (PALF). The mean age of children with Hepatitis A was 6.7 years. The majority of cases were reported in the 5–9 (39.7%) year age range. Hepatic encephalopathy, length of hospital stay, levels of albumin, and values of PT, aPPT, and INR were significantly higher in children with acute live failure. The presence of cholecystitis and cholecystitis with ascites in the sonographic evaluation were poor prognostic markers for acute liver failure.ConclusionsThis study revealed hepatitis A virus infection and its related acute liver failure among hospitalized children in Somalia of which 11% had PALF. Hence, the introduction of Hepatitis A vaccination, which is the main public health tool, into the national immunization program, the improvement of hygiene conditions, raising awareness of the disease, and increasing health literacy are necessary to prevent the consequence of the Hepatitis A virus in children.
Highlights
Hepatitis A is one of the most common infectious causes of acute hepatitis, and currently, a neglected global public health problem necessitating an urgent response in Somalia
Most studies on seroprevalence data of hepatitis A virus are usually reported as anti-Hepatitis A virus (HAV) immunoglobin class G (IgG), rather than anti-HAV immunoglobulin class M (IgM) seroprevalence data [3]
Between June 2019 and December 2019, of the 13,047 patients admitted to the pediatrics department, 419 were tested for Hepatitis A IgM and IgG tests
Summary
Hepatitis A is one of the most common infectious causes of acute hepatitis, and currently, a neglected global public health problem necessitating an urgent response in Somalia. Hepatitis A is one of the most common infectious causes of acute hepatitis, but is currently, a neglected global public health concern necessitating an urgent response. Keles et al BMC Infect Dis (2021) 21:890 It is a self-limiting, vaccine-preventable, non-chronic disease but rarely leads to acute liver failure [1]. Infection with HAV causes an immune response which is assessed by measurement of specific antibodies: immunoglobulin class M (IgM) anti-HAV antibodies and immunoglobin class G (IgG) anti-HAV antibodies and detected during acute illness when the serum aminotransferase levels are elevated and there is fecal shedding of the virus. Most studies on seroprevalence data of hepatitis A virus are usually reported as anti-HAV IgG, rather than anti-HAV IgM seroprevalence data [3]
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