Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A is a liver infection that spreads through the poo of an infected person. The chance of getting it in the UK is low.

Hepatitis A is not usually serious. Most people get better within a couple of months.

Some people with hepatitis A, particularly young children, won't have any symptoms.

If you do get symptoms, they usually show up around 4 weeks after you've been exposed to the hepatitis A virus. They can include:

• feeling tired and generally unwell
• joint and muscle pain
• a high temperature (fever)
• loss of appetite
• feeling or being sick
• pain in the upper-right part of your tummy
• a headache, sore throat and cough
• constipation or diarrhoea
• a raised, itchy rash (hives)
• yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice)
• dark pee
• pale poo
• itchy skin
• the upper-right part of your tummy becoming swollen and tender

• You think you may have been exposed to the hepatitis A virus, because emergency treatment can help prevent infection if it's given within a few days of exposure
• You have symptoms of hepatitis A
• You're at increased risk of hepatitis A

A blood test can show whether you have hepatitis A. It can also rule out other conditions that cause similar symptoms but may need treatment to prevent more serious problems.

Your friends, family and sexual partners may need to be tested too.

There's no cure for hepatitis A at the moment. In most cases it gets better on its own within a couple of months.

Once you've had hepatitis A, you'll normally be immune to it for life.

• get plenty of rest
• take painkillers such as paracetamol or ibuprofen for any aches and pains (ask your doctor for advice first, as you may need lower doses than normal or may need to avoid certain medicines until you've recovered)
• stay in a cool, airy room
• wear loose clothing
• eat smaller, lighter meals, which can help reduce feeling sick and vomiting
• wash your hands with soap and water regularly
• wash soiled laundry separately on a hot cycle
• clean the toilet, flush handles and taps more often than usual

• do not drink alcohol
• do not have very hot baths or showers
• do not prepare food for other people, if you can avoid it
• do not share towels
• do not go to work or school until at least a week after your jaundice or other symptoms started
• do not have sex until at least a week after your jaundice or other symptoms started

See your doctor if your hepatitis A symptoms get worse, or if they haven't started to get better within a couple of months. The doctor can prescribe medicines to help with itchiness, nausea or vomiting, if you need them.

Hepatitis A can sometimes last for many months. In rare cases it becomes life-threatening, because it can cause liver failure. People with other liver problems and elderly people are most at risk. If liver failure does happen, a liver transplant is usually needed to treat it.

Hepatitis A is most common in parts of the world where cleanliness and food hygiene standards are poor.

You can catch the infection from:

• drinking unclean water
• eating food that's been washed or grown in unclean water
• eating food that's been handled by an infected person
• close contact with someone who has hepatitis A
• having sex with someone who has the infection, particularly if you touch their anus with your fingers, mouth or tongue
• injecting drugs using unclean equipment

A person with hepatitis A is most infectious from around 2 weeks before their symptoms appear until about 1 week after the symptoms first develop.

Vaccination is the best way to prevent hepatitis A.

For most people the risk of infection is low, so the hepatitis A vaccine is only recommended for people at increased risk, including:

• close contacts of someone with hepatitis A
• people planning to travel to or live in parts of the world where hepatitis A is widespread, particularly if levels of cleanliness and food hygiene are expected to be poor
• people with any type of long-term (chronic) liver disease
• men who have sex with other men
• people who inject illegal drugs
• people who may be exposed to hepatitis A through their job (for example sewage workers, staff at homeless shelters, and people working with monkeys, apes and gorillas)