A small number of hepatitis cases have been detected in young children across Scotland - including in Tayside - after an unusual surge in cases amongst youngsters.
Public Health Scotland (PHS) chiefs are aware of 11 cases of hepatitis - an inflammation of the liver - identified in children aged between one and five years old who have been admitted to hospital across the central belt.
Four NHS Health Board areas in Scotland have reported the “non A to E hepatitis” cases mostly in March, including Tayside, Lanarkshire, Greater Glasgow, Clyde and Fife.
As yet, there is no clear connection between the cases or clear cause, and the hepatitis viruses commonly associated with this condition have been excluded.
Every year there are normally seven or eight cases of non A to E hepatitis, without other underlying diagnoses, detected in children in Scotland.
Sometimes referred to as hepatitis X, it is a disease that is diagnosed when there is swelling of the liver, with symptoms such as abdominal pain and nausea, but examination and testing does not identify a cause.
But the prevalence of the number of cases in such a short period of time has sparked concern for PHS, as well as the geographical spread and severity of illness, in some cases, is unusual and requires further investigation.
PHS say all potential causes in the outbreak are being explored but infection is considered to be a more probable source this time.
Investigations are still in the early stages and work is ongoing with partners and other agencies across the UK to investigate these cases.
Director of public health for Public Health Scotland Dr Nicholas Phin said: “If you have a child who is showing signs of jaundice, where the skin has a yellow tinge and is most easily seen in the whites of the eyes, then parents should contact their GP or other health care professional.
“We are continuing to investigate these cases and will provide further updates as and when they are available.”
The outbreak comes two years after NHS Tayside announced it was the first region in the world to effectively eliminate hepatitis C.
The health board developed a pioneering approach to treating the life-threatening blood borne virus in 2012, involving treatment of injecting drug users.
