Advice issued to Guernsey following rise of hepatitis in UK

The warning includes the symptoms to look out for in children and what parents should do if their child is unwell

Parents of children in Guernsey are being urged to be vigilant, following a rise in cases of hepatitis in the UK.

The virus has not been detected in the island, but more than a hundred cases have been found in children in the UK since the start of this year.

Guernsey's director of public health, Dr Nicola Brink, said parents of children with symptoms should take them to a GP or to the Emergency Department.

She said the symptoms were easy to spot.

"The urine becomes dark, the stools become pale, almost grey in appearance, people can have itchy skin, yellow skin, the whites of the eyes can go yellow as well, muscle pains, temperatures and so on.

"If [parents] are worried, they should access primary care in the first instance, their GP, but if they are worried about their child of course there's an emergency department available 24/7."

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