1. Stephanie Garcia
Monday, March 3rd, 2014
AM Medical Assisting

2. What is Hepatitis A?
Contagious liver disease that results from
infection with the Hepatitis A virus
Least serious & mildest from other
Hepatitis types but durations can range
Low risk of death but can become fatal for
the elderly and people with chronic liver
disease

3. Symptoms About 90% of children < 6 years old usually have NO symptoms
 Older children & adults, symptoms may include the following:
 Fever, fatigue
 Loss of appetite
 Nausea, vomiting
 Abdominal pain
 Joint pain
 Dark urine
 Jaundice
People may feel sick up to 2 - 6 weeks after they actually get the hepatitis A virus.

4. How common?
Still occurs in the United States, but not as frequently & high as it once did
Over last 20 years, there has been more than a about 90% decrease in
Hepatitis A cases
New cases are now estimated to be around 20,000 each year
Many experts believe this decline is actually a result of the vaccination for
this disease
Approximately 20% of people with symptoms need to be hospitalized, & 3
– 5 people out of every 1,000 cases die from disease

5. How is this virus spread?
Usually spread when a person ingests (usually poor unsanitary
conditions) oral-fecal matter—even in microscopic amounts
 You eat/drink food/water that has been contaminated by stools (feces) containing
the Hep A virus. Fruits,vegetables,shellfish,ice, & water: common sources of the disease
 A person with hepatitis A passes virus to an object/food due to poor hand-
washing after using the bathroom, caregiving, etc
 You come in contact with the stool/blood of a person who currently has the
disease
 Someone engages in certain sexual activities

6. Hepatitis Vaccine
Prevents hepatitis A disease
Made from killed (inactivated) virus
Given in two doses, at least 6 months apart
Children should get the vaccine at 12 through 23 months of age

7. Who should get vaccinated against
Hepatitis A?
 Vaccinationrecommended to certain groups included:
 All children at age 1 year
 Overseas travel, especially to Asia or South or CentralAmerica
 Working in a health care, food, or sewage industry
 Living in a nursing home center
 Users of recreational drugs, whether injected or not
 People with chronic or long-term liver disease, including Hepatitis B or Hepatitis
C
 People with clotting-factor disorders

8. References
 http://acelebrationofwomen.org/2013/05/the-
alphabet-soup-of-hepatitis/
 http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/A/PDFs/HepAGeneralF
actSheet.pdf
 http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/hepa/fs-
parents.html
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH00
01323/#adam_000278.disease.prevention