Hepatitis A

From ArticleWorld

Hepatitis A is a food-borne enteroviral infection that passes from human to human via the fecal-oral route. That means that an infected individual fails to adequately wash his or her hands and gets virus particles on food that another eats to become infected as well. Hepatitis A causes acute hepatitis that is resolved when an individual develops antibodies against the virus and clears the virus from their system. Unlike some other types of hepatitis, this disease doesn’t have a chronic phase.

Symptoms

Up to 25% of patients with active, transmissible hepatitis A have no symptoms whatsoever. Of those that have symptoms, they may develop nausea, fever, fatigue, poor appetite, stomach pain and vomiting. These symptoms can mimic almost any other gastrointestinal virus. The onset of dark urine, containing bilirubin, and jaundice are more obvious signs of hepatitis.

Up to 1/3 of all Americans will show evidence of having had the disease which cannot be given once a person has recovered. Up to 15% of infected individuals will have a prolonged course of up to several months. There is no specific treatment for hepatitis A.

Prevention

Hepatitis A can be prevented by sanitation and good personal hygiene. In places where the prevalence is high, a vaccination series can be given that will confer immunity for what is believed to be around a 25 year period of time. If someone is exposed but is not immunized, hepatitis A immune globulin can be given that will eliminate or lessen the symptoms a person gets.

Epidemiology

Hepatitis A carries a high prevalence in Greenland, Africa, Middle Eastern countries and in Mexico. A few countries in South America have high rates of hepatitis A as well. Australia, Canada, the US and most of Europe are also relatively free of frequent hepatitis A epidemics. Not all epidemics are from poor handwashing. In 2003, over 600 people were infected in the U.S. due to tainted green onions from Mexico.