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Hepatitis A in Washington
State
From 1989 to 2005, the incidence of hepatitis A
decreased from 70 to 1 case/100,000 population, primarily as
a result of the introduction of hepatitis A vaccine.
Sources of exposure identified in Washington have included
contact with an infected person in a household or child care
center, sexual contact, injection and non-injection drug use
(especially methamphetamine), restaurant meals, travel to an
endemic area, and ingestion of contaminated food or water.
Prophylaxis with immune globulin is recommended for patrons
of a food service establishment where a food handler is
diagnosed with hepatitis A only if all of the following
conditions exist:
- The case was directly involved in handling, without
gloves, foods that will not be cooked before they are eaten
and
- The hygienic practices of the food handler are inadequate
or the food handler worked while infectious and
- Patrons can be notified and treated within 14 days of
exposure
Purpose of Reporting and
Surveillance
- To
identify individual cases, disease outbreaks and potential
sources of ongoing transmission to prevent further spread of
hepatitis A.
- To identify contacts and assure timely prevention
measures.
- To educate contacts about signs and symptoms of disease,
to facilitate early diagnosis.
- To educate cases and contacts about transmission of
hepatitis A and how to reduce their risk of infection.
Legal Reporting Requirements
-
Health care
providers: immediately notifiable to local health
jurisdiction
-
Hospitals:
immediately notifiable to local health jurisdiction
-
Laboratories:
detection of anti-HAV IgM notifiable to local health
jurisdiction within 2 work days
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Local health
jurisdictions: notifiable to the Washington State
Department of Health (DOH) Communicable Disease
Epidemiology Section (CDES) within 7 days of case
investigation completion or summary information required
within 21 days
Last
update
Jan. 2008 |
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