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Epidemiology Corner August 6, 1999
Hepatitis A Control
Today's topic is HAV vaccine for post-exposure prophylaxis for hepatitis A. In a study from Italy, 404 household contacts of acute hepatitis A cases were randomly assigned to receive either hepatitis A vaccine or nothing. These households were followed for 45 days. Secondary cases of hepatitis A had occurred in 2.8 percent of households in the vaccine group and in 13.3 percent of households in the non-vaccinated group. In Spokane, Washington there was an outbreak of hepatitis A which extended since 1997 with an incidence rate peak at about 130 per 100,000 person-years in January 1998, over 10 times the average U.S. rate. During the outbreak Spokane vaccinated over 30,000 people at a cost of over $1,000,000. The outbreak is over now. Hepatitis A vaccine is not recommended as prophylaxis routinely in the U.S. The last hepatitis A outbreak in Houston occurred at an apartment complex in the fall of 1998. The majority of the cases were in elementary school age children. Locally, hepatitis A vaccine is administered in specific schools to K and pre-K children, 5 years of age and under by the Bureau of Immunizations in order to control the disease. |
