WHO announces number of mysterious hepatitis cases

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The World Health Organization said Saturday that at least one child has died following an increase in severe hepatitis in children.

The organization added that 169 cases of children had been reported in 12 countries.

As health officials around the world continue to investigate the mysterious increase in the incidence of serious hepatitis in young children, the WHO has released statistics.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says that as of April 21, severe cases of hepatitis have been reported in Britain, the United States, Spain, Israel, Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Italy, Norway, France, Romania and Belgium. The organization said 114 of the 169 cases were in the UK alone.

The organization added that the registered cases were in children aged one month to 16 years and that 17 of them required liver transplant surgery. The report did not include details of those who died of the disease and did not specify where it occurred.

The organization said it was monitoring the situation and was cooperating with British health officials, other member states and allies in the area.