The cause of hepatitis A is an infection with the
hepatitis A virus. This is a single-stranded RNA virus from the family
Picornaviridae and genus
hepatovirus. The virus only infects humans.
How Is Hepatitis A Spread?
Hepatitis A is most commonly spread by eating or drinking something (or putting something in your mouth, such as a utensil) that has been contaminated with the stool of a person with hepatitis A.
This type of transmission is called "fecal-oral" transmission. For this reason, the hepatitis A virus is more easily spread in areas where there are poor sanitary conditions or where good personal hygiene is not observed.
Most infections result from contact with a household member or sex partner who has hepatitis A. Casual contact, as in the usual office, factory, or school setting, does not spread the virus.
Incubation Period for Hepatitis A
Following
hepatitis A transmission, a person does not immediately become sick. Once the virus enters the body, it travels to the liver, where it begins to multiply.
After 15 to 45 days, hepatitis A symptoms can begin. This period between transmission of the virus and the start of symptoms is called the "hepatitis A incubation period."
Many people with hepatitis A will not have any symptoms. This is especially true in children. If people do have symptoms, they may start abruptly and include the following:
- Yellowing of the skin or eyes (also known as jaundice)
- Feeling very tired
- Stomach pain (abdominal pain)
- Not feeling very hungry
- Dark urine
- Nausea
- Diarrhea
- Muscle pain
- Joint pain
- Low-grade fever.
In a number of people, these symptoms may be confused with symptoms of
stomach flu, especially in the early stages.
Chronic or long-term problems are rare with hepatitis A, but 10 percent of infected people will have prolonged symptoms over a six- to nine-month period. These symptoms may come and go during this time.
Contagious Period for Hepatitis A
A person is contagious during the hepatitis A incubation period and remains so for about a week after developing jaundice. A person appears to be most contagious during the middle of the incubation period, well before symptoms of hepatitis A appear.
In order to make a hepatitis A diagnosis, a healthcare provider will ask the patient a number of questions and perform a physical exam, looking for signs and symptoms of the disease.
If hepatitis A is suspected, the healthcare provider will order certain tests that help to diagnose the disease. Some of these tests will look for high levels of liver enzymes or bilirubin in the blood. Other tests will look for antibodies the body has made against the
hepatitis A virus.
Treatment for Hepatitis A
There is currently no treatment for hepatitis A that can kill the virus. And because it is caused by a virus, antibiotics or other medications for hepatitis A are not effective. Instead, treatment focuses on providing relief of symptoms as the body fights the hepatitis A virus. This is called supportive care.
Prognosis for Hepatitis A
While there is no cure for hepatitis A, most people infected with the virus get well within six months. As mentioned, about 15 percent of infected people will have prolonged or relapsing symptoms over a period of months.
Hepatitis A can be serious for older people and people who already have liver disease. Death is possible, although rare.
With hepatitis A, there is no chronic (long-term) infection. Once you have had it, you cannot get it again.
The best cure for hepatitis A is preventing it in the first place. Prevention is best accomplished with the
hepatitis A vaccine, which is given as a shot.
Other Names for Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A used to be known by several other names, including:
- Infectious hepatitis
- Epidemic hepatitis
- Epidemic jaundice
- Catarrhal jaundice
- Infectious icterus.
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