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What is Hepatitis A?
Hepatitis means inflammation (or swelling) of the liver. Hepatitis A is
a virus that causes liver disease. The virus is transmitted by the
fecal-oral route. That means you must get something in your mouth that
is contaminated with stool from an infected person. The disease is mild
in children, but can be more severe in adults. It can cause infected
individuals to miss up to six weeks of work.
What are the symptoms of Hepatitis A?
Infected persons may experience fever, extreme weakness, poor appetite,
nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and diarrhea. Symptoms are usually
followed by a few days of dark "tea-colored" urine and jaundice (yellow
skin and eyes). Symptoms often appear about one month after infection,
but can develop anytime between two to six weeks after infection.
How is Hepatitis A spread?
Infected food handlers may carry the virus on their hands and may
contaminate ready-to-eat foods if they do not use good handwashing
practices after every restroom visit and they have bare-hand contact
with ready-to-eat food. The disease spreads when it enters the mouth of
a person who has not had Hepatitis A before or is not immunized against
Hepatitis A.
Good handwashing after restroom visits and no bare-hand contact with
ready-to-eat food greatly reduce the spread of Hepatitis A from an
infected food handler to others.
How long can an infected person spread
Hepatitis A?
An infected person can spread the virus for 1 to 2 weeks before symptoms
start and up to 10 days after jaundice. An infected person
may potentially shed Hepatitis A virus for almost a month.How is
it treated?
There is no specific treatment for Hepatitis A. Bed rest and avoiding
alcohol, drugs, and over-the-counter medicines is recommended for a
faster recovery. Once recovered, a person cannot spread the disease
further, is immune for life and cannot be infected with Hepatitis A
again.
Are food handlers at higher risk for Hepatitis A?
Food handlers are not at higher risk than other persons for becoming
infected. However, infected food handlers are at higher risk for spreading
Hepatitis A to others. Food
handlers have the potential to infect hundreds of people if they work
while infected with Hepatitis A, do not follow good handwashing
practices,
and have bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods.
What if a food handler is experiencing symptoms of Hepatitis A?
If a food handler is experiencing symptoms of Hepatitis A, the food
handler should not handle food, should seek
medical care and should not return to food handling until 2 weeks after
the beginning of the illness.
What about an infected food handler's co-workers?
Co-workers who worked the same days and shifts of a food handler
infected with hepatitis A should not be allowed to handle food until
they receive a shot of immune globulin (IG) to help prevent Hepatitis A
or show proof of previous infection or previous vaccination. The
co-workers may return to food handling if they receive IG or provide
proof of immunity and are not experiencing any symptoms. If the
co-workers refuse IG, they are not allowed to handle food for 50 days
starting from their last contact to the infected food handler during the
time when the food handler was still contagious.
What is the Hepatitis A vaccine?
The Hepatitis A vaccine is a shot of inactive virus that stimulates the
natural immune system. After the vaccine is given, the body makes
antibodies that protect against that virus. These antibodies are stored
in the body for several years and will fight off the infection if the
person is exposed to the Hepatitis A virus.
Source: Kansas Department of Agriculture, Handout #17:
Hepatitis A and Food Handlers
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