Ministry Of Health Data Says 3 Deaths In Jakarta Are Suspected Of Being Acute Hepatitis, Experts Ask For Laboratory Proof

JAKARTA - A health expert who is also Director of Postgraduate Program at YARSI University, Prof. Dr. Tjandra Yoga Aditama, said that the death cases of three patients in Jakarta were suspected to be due to the mysterious illness, acute hepatitis, requiring laboratory evidence.

"It would be good if there was a more detailed explanation of the difference in fatalities for reports of one death from 170 cases in the world and three deaths in Indonesia," he said when confirmed by Antara in Jakarta, Tuesday, May 3.

In an official report from the Ministry of Health, it was stated that three of the patients found in Jakarta were in the age group of children being treated at Dr Ciptomangunkusumo Hospital, Jakarta.

The patient is suspected to have experienced acute hepatitis and died in different periods, ranging from the last two weeks to April 30, 2022.

According to Tjandra Yoga Adhitama, the report did not include information on laboratory results for hepatitis A, B, C and E in the three cases found.

"World data states that the incidence of hepatitis, which is widely discussed, results in negative hepatitis AE laboratory results. In addition, what are the results of the presence or absence of Adenovirus 41, which is now widely suspected as the cause of hepatitis across continents," he said.

He emphasized the need for an explanation of the laboratory results of hepatitis AE and also adenovirus in cases in Indonesia to be conveyed to the public.

"WHO recommends examination of blood, serum, urine, feces, airway samples and if possible liver biopsy, all for in-depth examination of viral characteristics, including sequencing," he said.

Tjandra, who is also the former Director of WHO Southeast Asia, said Indonesia needed to increase its vigilance over the emergence of acute hepatitis cases in Jakarta and a number of countries because WHO had declared the mysterious disease an Extraordinary Event (KLB).

According to him, the case has come to the attention of the WHO and other world bodies because the mysterious disease is increasingly reaching Singapore.

He said the disease was suffered by a patient in Singapore aged 10 months with negative results for hepatitis types A, B, C and E.

"This patient had experienced COVID-19 last December, although so far there has been no clear scientific evidence between acute hepatitis and Corona virus infection," he said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States has also reported that of the nine similar cases in Alabama, two of the pediatric patients required liver transplants. All of them tested positive for adenovirus.

"The symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea and also an upper respiratory tract infection," he said.

On the other hand, he said, there was a hypothesis entitled "SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination Can Cause CD8 T Cell Dominant Hepatitis" in the Journal of Hepatology, which was released on April 21, 2022.

In response to this situation, he encouraged Indonesia's vigilance by conducting early detection of suspected cases, including access and availability of examinations for adenovirus and various other types of viruses.

In addition, it is necessary to start the initial alertness of health services, including hospitals, at least an explanation to health workers and various basic therapies.

"Including health education to the wider community," said Tjandra Yoga Adhitama.