Hepatitis A: At-Risk Populations

Abstract

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is transmitted mostly through exposure to contaminated food or water, or through exposure to infected persons. This infection can occur sporadically or in an epidemic form, confers lifelong immunity and it is preventable by a safe and effective vaccine. Therefore, prevention strategies are crucial and could eradicate the infection if they were successfully employed. In this chapter, authors summarize mode of transmission and preventive measures for HAV among the following population groups: travellers, health care workers, men who have sex with men, individuals who use illicit drugs, sewage workers, food handlers, military personnel, prisoners, blood transfusions recipients, haemophiliacs and patients with HIV and chronic liver disease. Moreover, authors describe which of these groups are eligible for HAV vaccination according to available data.

I Seven International Medical and Nursing Congress

“…Whether a rich country or a poorer country, there are always people more susceptible to virus infections. For HAV, there are 10 types of populations at risk for Hepatitis A virus infection: 1) Travelers to endemic areas, the main cause of cases in non-endemic countries; 2) Men who have sex with men (Coelho & Macedo, 2019), many of the most recent outbreaks in Europe report male homosexuals (Polański & Sadkowska-Todys, 2019); 3) individuals who use illegal drugs, mainly in needle sharing; 4) Individuals in charge of food, mostly shellfish and seafood, which lead to outbreaks; 5) workers in the health area are constantly in contact with numerous diseases; 6) sewage workers, since the virus leaves the human body through faeces; 7) Military, war missions where hygiene conditions are low or even null; 8) Prisoners often share the same private facilities with dozens of other inmates; 9) Recipients of blood transfusions, which is rarer considering the short period of time the virus is present in the blood; 10) Hemophiliacs, also related to blood transfusions (Coelho & Macedo, 2019).…”

The epidemiology of Hepatitis A in Portugal and in the World A comparative study

“…Whether a rich country or a poorer country, there are always people more susceptible to virus infections. For HAV, there are 10 types of populations at risk for Hepatitis A virus infection: 1) Travelers to endemic areas, the main cause of cases in non-endemic countries; 2) Men who have sex with men [23], many of the most recent outbreaks in Europe report male homosexuals [24]; 3) individuals who use illegal drugs, mainly in needle sharing; 4) Individuals in charge of food, mostly shellfish and seafood, which lead to outbreaks; 5) workers in the health area are constantly in contact with numerous diseases; 6) sewage workers, since the virus leaves the human body through faeces; 7) Military, war missions where hygiene conditions are low or even null; 8) Prisoners often share the same private facilities with dozens of other inmates; 9) Recipients of blood transfusions, which is rarer considering the short period of time the virus is present in the blood; 10) Hemophiliacs, also related to blood transfusions [23].…”