5 things you need to know about hepatitis A

Hepatitis A can easily spread from person to person, but only by touching objects or eating food handled by someone with the disease or by having sex with an infected person. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that person-to-person transmission through close contact is the primary way people get hepatitis A in the United States.

The most obvious symptom of hepatitis A is jaundice, or yellowing of the skin or eyes. By the time a patient has this symptom, the disease is rather advanced.

Other symptoms include:

• Fever

• Fatigue

• Nausea and vomiting

• Loss of appetite

• Stomach pain

• Dark urine or pale stools

If you think you are infected with hepatitis A, see your doctor or visit the closest emergency room.

Hepatitis A is transmitted by fecal particles, so those who work in health care settings, work with at-risk populations, or people who lack access to clean water and restrooms, including people who are experiencing homelessness, are most at risk. Other risk factors include injection drug use and close contact with an infected person.

The easiest way to prevent infection is to wash your hands before and after eating or preparing food and after using the restroom, changing a diaper or assisting someone with toileting. For people who live and work in infected areas, another precaution would be to disinfect the soles of shoes or remove shoes when walking around the home.

For those at higher risk, a two-dose hepatitis A and B vaccine is available through your health provider or the County of San Diego.

The County of San Diego recommends that the following groups be vaccinated against hepatitis A:

• People traveling to a country with high or medium rates of hepatitis A

• Men who have sex with men

• Users of injection and noninjection illegal drugs

• People who work with people who use illegal drugs

• People with chronic liver disease who have an increased risk of poor outcomes if infected

• People with blood-clotting disorders

• People experiencing homelessness

• People who work with people experiencing homelessness

• Food handlers

• Health care workers