Hepatitis A

  • Is it hepatitis A day and no one told me?

    Posted: April 3rd, 2008 - 7:40pm by Ben Chapman

    After posting this week's infosheet on a Brazilian soccer club's hep A outbreak possibly linked to dirty water bottles we picked up three more stories on hep A exposures:

    Cincinnati, OH:
    A food handler at a PF Chang's restaurant in West Chester, OH was diagnosed with hepatitis A earlier this week, and today there was a report of the vaccination clinic running out vaccine and sending exposed individuals to an urgent care facility as a back up (resulting in wait times upwards of three hours).

    Boise, ID:

    Nearly 300 people were vaccinated for hepatitis A at Boise's Central District Health this past week.
    The rush came after a health scare at the Red Feather Lounge where an employee confirmed infected with the virus

    New Zealand:

    An orchard worker was found  to have hepatitis A and was  sent home to the Solomon Islands.
    The fruitpicker, who was working at Apollo Pac in Whakatu for the season, was referred to the Hawke's Bay District Health Board's (DHB's) public health unit with the symptoms of Hepatitis A, including nausea and jaundice. The DHB's medical officer of health Caroline McElnay was cited as saying  23 people who had been living in close quarters with the person had also been screened for the disease and given an injection of antibodies for temporary protection.

    Happy hep A day.

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  • New International Food Safety Network Infosheet -- Brazillian soccer club hit with hepatitis A

    Posted: April 3rd, 2008 - 8:34am by Ben Chapman

    Capitalizing on the massive popularity of soccer, we decided to throw together an infosheet on the reported hepatitis A illnesses linked to a Brazilian club team.  As Doug posted last night, health authorities are linking the outbreak to shared water bottles (they must have been contaminated with some nasty poop).

    You can download the infosheet here.



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  • Brazilian soccer team Internacional hit with hepatitis A outbreak

    Posted: April 2nd, 2008 - 5:57pm by Doug Powell

    Associated Press is reporting that a hepatitis A outbreak hit the Brazilian soccer team Internacional, sidelining five players who are now banned from any contact with teammates.

    The team said the liver disease probably spread from player to player in the locker room, most likely through shared water bottles.

    Except hepatitis A is not spread by saliva; it's spread by poop. So there was either poop on the water bottles -- possibly from someone's hand -- or poop in the water.

    Or the water bottle theory is wrong.

    Internacional is a former club world champion.
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  • Fancy food doesn't mean safe food -- Socialista edition

    Posted: February 24th, 2008 - 6:11am by Doug Powell

    Health officials said that hundreds of patrons of a posh Manhattan hot spot, including A-list celebrities who attended actor Ashton Kutcher's 30th birthday party there, may have been exposed to hepatitis A.

    James Trinko, 29, received a vaccination Saturday and said,

    "I just can't believe that in a restaurant as fancy as it was, that they would have this problem. It's kind of a pain in the butt to come out here and deal with this." But "you have to do it."

    The story says that hepatitis A virus is found in fecal matter. If someone with the disease doesn't wash his or her hands properly and handles food or drinks, the virus can be spread.

    Health department spokeswoman Jessica Scaperotti said the Socialista bartender, whose name was not released, handled glasses and garnishes, and there was no soap behind the bar.
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  • Keep the hepatitis A poop off your hands -- and Oscar party platters

    Posted: February 23rd, 2008 - 11:38am by Doug Powell

    The Hollywood Writer's Strike ended just in time for the Oscars, but not in time to salvage several already canceled Oscar parties.

    Madonna, fresh from potentially being exposed to hepatitis A at Ashton Kutcher's 30th birthday party on Feb. 7, has stepped up and put together a 'last minute' party with the help of her manager, Guy Oseary, and pal Demi Moore.

    Hope Madge and Demi will have all the servers screened for the hepatitis A virus.

    Hepatitis A is a relatively rare disease spread by putting something in one's mouth that has been contaminated with traces of fecal matter.

    Get vaccinated for hepatitis A. And dude, wash your damn hands.

    Don't eat poop.
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  • Celebrities line up for Hepatitis A shots in New York

    Posted: February 21st, 2008 - 10:23pm by Doug Powell

    Last week it was a Wegman's supermarket in New York. Last year it was Beyonce at a Wolfgang Puck catered Sports Illustrated party. This time, it's Ashton Kutcher's 30th birthday party on Feb. 7 where A-list celebrities such as Demi Moore, Madonna, Ivanka Trump, Salma Hayek, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson, Bruce Willis, Lucy Liu, Roberto Cavalli and Liv Tyler, who all attended, are now being asked to get immunoglobin shots to ward off hepatitis A.

    Apparently a bartender at Socialista, some fancy club where the birthday bash was held, was discovered to be carrying hepatitis A earlier this week, and when city health department officials inspected the bar they discovered that it lacked hand-washing soap.

    One story gave a new twist to the oral-fecal route description we usually use:

    According to the health department, hepatitis A is a relatively rare disease spread by putting something in one's mouth that has been contaminated with traces of fecal matter.

    Don't eat poop.

    The day manager who answered the phone at Socialista this afternoon told the Health Blog that the bartender apparently got hepatitis on a recent vacation to Honduras, and just found out he had the bug.

    These hepatitis A cases are a weekly occurrence in the U.S. A food worker (bartender) parties in Mexico or the Dominican or in this case, Honduras, where hepatitis A is endemic. Food worker (bartender) comes home, is fine for two weeks, then spends the next two weeks crapping out virus. And unless food worker  (bartender) is really diligent about handwashing, he's spreading virus-containing poop on food -- especially fresh produce or salads. And it's really hard to effectively wash hands without soap. After four weeks, food worker turns yellow and goes to the doctor where a diagnosis is made. Then the clinics start.

    Get vaccinated for hepatitis A. And dude, wash your damn hands.






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  • Hepatitis A clinics cost $500,000 so far; vaccination is cheaper

    Posted: February 15th, 2008 - 3:01am by Doug Powell

    WGRZ is reporting that the hepatitis A positive Wegmans' employee has led to at least $500,000 being spent on vaccination clinics in upstate New York.

    So far, more than 8,300 people have been vaccinated.

    Dr. Anthony Billittier said,

    "When it comes to protecting the public's health we need to do what we need to do."

    Erie County Executive Chris Collins said,

    "We've redeployed workers out of the Rath building to go to the ECC clinic. They aren't doing their jobs in the Rath building but we're paying them anyway, so is it a cost for the Hepatitis clinic, yes, because when they come back their work is piling up." And they may have to work overtime to catch up.

    It's also costing taxpayers money to rents screen to give patients privacy, for the needles to inject the vaccine, and for the NFTA buses on standby to keep people waiting warm.

    These hepatitis A cases are a weekly occurrence in the U.S. A food worker parties in Mexico or the Dominican where hepatitis A is endemic. Food worker comes home, is fine for two weeks, then spends the next two weeks crapping out virus. And unless food worker is really diligent about handwashing, he's spreading virus-containing poop on food -- especially fresh produce or salads. After four weeks, food worker turns yellow and goes to the doctor where a diagnosis is made. Then the clinics start.

    Get vaccinated for hepatitis A. And dude, wash your damn hands.
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  • Hepatitis A scare at New York Wegmans store

    Posted: February 9th, 2008 - 8:14am by Doug Powell

    Erie County health officials say a produce handler at a Williamsville grocery store has been diagnosed with Hepatitis A and they're advising people who might have been exposed to get treatment.

    Anyone who handled or ate raw produce purchased from the Wegmans on Sheridan Drive since January 7th is asked to contact their doctor or get treated at free clinics this weekend.

    Produce shelves at the Wegmans store on Sheridan Drive were empty last night after the store pulled all potentially contaminated products.

    The Erie County Health Department is hosting clinics at the Erie Community College north campus from 4 p.m. to midnight Saturday, and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday. For more information call 1-800-808-1987.

    Wegmans spokesperson Ann McCarthy said,

    "We will be doing, as we've done in the past, making automated phone calls to customers who would have purchased potentially affected products from our Sheridan Drive store."

    Additional information about hepatitis A can be found at
    www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hepatitis/a/

    Dude, wash your hands. And don't eat poop.
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  • Hepatitis A case confirmed at B.C. ski resort restaurant

    Posted: January 31st, 2008 - 7:16am by Doug Powell

    The British Columbia Interior Health Authority warned yesterday that people who ate at the Sun Peaks ski resort near Kamloops between January 7 and 24 may have been exposed to Hepatitis A.

    Dr. Digby Horne, the medical health officer for the Thompson-Cariboo-Shuswap area told CBC News on Wednesday morning that a food handler at Masa’s Bar and Grill developed the virus after travelling outside of the county.

    As a result, Interior Health is urging anyone who ate at Masa’s after 3 p.m. PT on January 16, 18, 20, 23 or 24 to get vaccinated.

    And food handlers, wash your damn hands.
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  • Foodborne illness sidelines Elias

    Posted: November 25th, 2007 - 6:39am by Doug Powell

    Devil's star forward Patrik Elias returned to New Jersey Saturday with what he believes was a case of food poisoning and not related to hepatitis A or the flu.

    Elias told the N.J. Star-Ledger,

    "It just came on real quick. I had no symptoms before. I think it was just regular food poisoning, nothing related to hepatitis. I started feeling nauseous Friday morning. I had a nap before the game and by midnight I was vomiting and had a fever. I still have a little fever today, probably because of dehydration, but stomach-wise I feel much better. I ate some soup today. Hopefully, it will go away as quickly as it came on."

    The story notes that it may indeed be food poisoning or the flu, but it is always a more serious matter with Elias. He contracted hepatitis A while playing in Russia during the 2004-05 lockout and missed the first 39 games of the '05-06 season while recovering.
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