There have been significant outbreaks of the liver-damaging hepatitis A virus reported in Michigan. So much so that Indiana health officials have placed Michigan on its travel warning list, urging residents who plan on visiting The Mitten to get the hepatitis A vaccine.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the vaccine is recommended for all children, and people with certain risk factors and medical conditions.
Who should get vaccinated:
- All children at age 1 year
- Travelers to countries where hepatitis A is common
- Family and caregivers of adoptees from countries where hepatitis A ic common
- Men who have sexual encounters with other men
- Users of recreational drugs, whether injects or not
- People with chronic or long-term liver disease, including hepatitis B or hepatitis C
- People with clotting-factor disorders
Hepatitis A can be spread when:
- An infected person does not wash his/her hands properly after going to the bathroom and then touches objects or food
- A caregiver does not properly wash his or her hands after changing diapers or cleaning up the stool of an infested person
- Someone engages in sexual activities with an infected person
- through contaminated food or water
The symptoms of Hepatitis A are:
- Fever
- Fatigue
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Abdominal pain
- Dark urine
- Grey-colored stools
- Joint pain
- Jaundice
The CDC says that symptoms are more likely to occur in adults than in children. Those symptoms usually last less than two months, although some people can be ill for as long as six months.
To protect yourself from the virus, the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services recommends:
- Getting vaccinated against hepatitis A
- Wash hands after using the restroom and before eating or preparing meals for yourself or others
- Use your own towels, toothbrushes, and eating utensils
- Do not have sex with someone who has HAV infection
- Do not share food, drinks, drugs, or smokes with other people
- If you think you may have hepatitis A, see your medical provider
- If you have hepatitis A, please cooperate with your local public health to help protect others
Visit www.cdc.gov/hepatitis or the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services for more information.
