Several outbreaks of acute hepatitis of unknown etiology (AHUE) in children were reported in 2022 in many countries, with adenovirus identified as the etiological agent in most of them. We aimed to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of AHUE cases in Egypt.

Methodology

Hospitalized patients with acute hepatitis were included in the study. Drug-induced, alcoholic hepatitis, autoimmune hepatitis, and Wilson’s disease were identified either by medical history or by routine laboratory diagnosis. Molecular and serological approaches were used to investigate common viral causes of hepatitis, such as hepatitis A–E viruses, cytomegalovirus, Epstein–Barr virus, herpes simplex viruses (HSV1/2), adenovirus, parvovirus B19, and coxsackie virus.

Results

A total of 42 patients were recruited and divided into two groups: 24 cases of unknown hepatitis after excluding the common causes and 18 cases of known …