Hepatitis A Fact Sheet – Centers for Disease Control

CLINICAL

FEATURES

* Jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, intermittent nausea, diarrhea

ETIOLOGIC

AGENT

* Hepatitis A virus

INCIDENCE

* Estimated 125,00-200,000 total infections/yr in United States

* 84,000-134,000 symptomatic infections/yr

* 100 deaths due to fulminant hepatitis/yr

SEQUELAE

* Prolonged or relapsing hepatitis (15%)

* No chronic infection

PREVALENCE

* 33% of Americans have evidence of past infection (immunity)

COSTS

* Estimated $200 million (1991 dollars)/yr (medical and work loss)

TRANSMISSION

* Fecal-oral; food/waterborne outbreaks; bloodborne (rare)

RISK GROUPS

* Household/sexual contacts of infected persons;

* International travelers;

* Persons living in American Indian reservations, Alaska Native villages, and other regions with endemic hepatitis A;

* During outbreaks: day care center employees or attendees, homosexually active men, injecting drug users

SURVEILLANCE

* National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System

* Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Program

* Sentinel Counties Studies

TRENDS

* Large nationwide outbreaks every decade (last in 1989)

* Cases increasing slightly during past several years

PREVENTION

* Hepatitis A vaccine is highly effective in preventing hepatitis A and provides the potential to have a substantial impact on the disease burden;

* Immune globulin administered pre- and postexposure;

* Good hygiene and sanitation