Source/China Biotechnology Network
Lola-Rose Raine, a three-year-old girl in the UK, unfortunately contracted hepatitis of unknown origin in March this year, Sky News reported. She was then rushed to the hospital in critical condition. Her parents were told Lola was suffering from acute liver failure and needed an urgent search for a matching donor to survive.
Lora’s father, Alan Raine, said the news came as a bolt from the blue for him.
He said, “When the doctor told me that my daughter needed a liver transplant or she might die. That’s not something that any father would accept. It was totally unexpected and heartbreaking. .”
Lora’s condition has been deteriorating, and in the intensive care unit she has been placed in an induced coma, which will give her body a chance to survive potential multiple organ failure .
Lora’s parents both volunteered to be their daughter’s liver transplant donors, but father Alan’s liver was a better match. The operation took seven hours. Half of Ellen’s liver was transplanted into his daughter. After the liver transplant, Lola’s condition improved immediately.
Lora’s parents were told that their daughter’s liver failure may have been caused by an adenovirus infection. The common virus usually causes flu-like symptoms, but it is unclear why there have been so many cases of this unexplained hepatitis in children in the UK this year.
UKHSA says 108 cases have been identified so far, including the most serious cases requiring a liver transplant. They are worried about it.
UKHSA Chief Medical Adviser Dr Susan Hopkins said: “In the first three months of this year we have seen eight children receiving liver transplants, which is not what we usually see. . We need to investigate and understand why. These cases are rare and unusual.”
Tassos Grammatikopoulos, Consultant Pediatric Hepatology at the hospital, said: “The investigation is still ongoing to find out what is driving this surge in cases. So far, we have determined that among these A large proportion, around 77%, are associated with infection with adenovirus, but may also be caused by a number of other different infections. Lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic may have played a role in this, as children do not have access to common pathogens and are not exposed to common infectious agents as they would when they were outdoors.”
Lora is currently undergoing physical therapy to help her regain her strength before her discharge from the hospital.