Another pandemic? Rat hepatitis discovered in humans for the first time

What about rat hepatitis?

Hepatitis A and E, including its rat version, are considered milder and have a low mortality rate. Rat hepatitis E was initially classified as a subtype of hepatitis E.

Very little is known about the disease

However, as the disease is still new, there are not enough studies on how it affects humans.

Neurogical ailments and fever

“We want to define whether the virus can cause other conditions, such as neurological ailments and fever disorders,” explained Rivero Román, professor of infectious diseases at the University of Córdoba, who led the research.

How is rat hepatitis transmitted?

Transmission probably occurs through animal feces, which can contaminate food, instruments, or surfaces in contact with humans, explained Antonio Rivero Juárez, a researcher specializing in hepatitis at the Maimónides Institute for Biomedical Research in Córdoba, to El País.

Another hypothesis

The second hypothesis of transmission would be through another animal that spreads the vitus as an asymptomatic intermediate host. The main candidate is pork-derived products that are not treated to eliminate the virus could potentially cause contamination.

One third of rats have hepatitis

Knowing transmission routes will be essential to take preventative measures and reduce the number of infections. Researchers analyzed samples from more than a thousand rats across Spain and discovered that around 30% of them carry the virus.

Spreading around the globe

The researchers believe that the rate found in Spain can be extended to all of Europe and, possibly, the entire world, as the virus was also detected in China.

An ongoing research

“We are facing a largely unknown emerging disease. We have several open lines of research that provide us with data on its prevalence, its real dimension as a public health problem and the clinical forms in which it manifests itself. However, there is still a lot of work to be done”, said Antonio Rivero Juárez, to El País.

Source: Another pandemic? Rat hepatitis discovered in humans for the first time (msn.com)