Severe Acute Hepatitis of Unknown Etiology in Indonesia: What Has Been Learned?

Abstract

The world has witnessed increased incidences of severe acute hepatitis in children since early 2021, in which the total number of global cases was over 1,000 in July 2022. Those cases of severe acute hepatitis were intriguing, as they were not caused by the common hepatitis A-E viruses. Additionally, the cause remains unknown to date, thus named as severe acute hepatitis of unknown etiology. The World Health Organization, supported by regional and national health agencies, has issued the working case definitions in order to closely monitor the development of this disease worldwide. As one of its member states, Indonesia has also adopted the case definitions and subsequently issued a health decree to increase public awareness and to conduct an early surveillance on this illness. It remains to be seen whether this updated public health policy would be successful to control the numbers of cases of severe acute hepatitis of unknown etiology in Indonesia.