Hepatitis A primary prevention
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Prevention
Hepatitis A can be prevented by good hygiene and sanitation. Vaccination is also available, and is reconmended in areas where the prevalence of hepatitis A is high. To prevent it, use your own towels and toothbrushes, eating utensils, and other personal products. Always wash your hands after and before eating and more importantly after using the toilet.
Primary Prevention
Always wash your hands after using the bathroom, changing a diaper, or before preparing or eating food.
Two products are used to prevent hepatitis A virus infection: immune globulin and hepatitis A vaccine.
1. Immune globulin is a preparation of antibodies that can be given before exposure for short-term protection against hepatitis A and for persons who have already been exposed to hepatitis A virus. Immune globulin must be given within 2 weeks after exposure to hepatitis A virus for maximum protection.
2. Hepatitis A vaccine has been licensed in the United States for use in persons 12 months of age and older. The vaccine is recommended (before exposure to hepatitis A virus) for persons who are more likely to get hepatitis A virus infection or are more likely to get seriously ill if they do get hepatitis A. The vaccines currently licensed in the United States are HAVRIX® (manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline) and VAQTA® (manufactured by Merck & Co., Inc).
Hepatitis A Vaccine:
Inactivated and attenuated hepatitis A vaccines have been developed and evaluated in human clinical trials and in nonhuman primate models of HAV infection; however, only vaccines made from inactivated HAV have been evaluated for efficacy in controlled clinical trials. The vaccines containing HAV antigen that are currently licensed in the United States are the single-antigen vaccines HAVRIX® (manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, Rixensart, Belgium) and VAQTA® (manufactured by Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, New Jersey) and the combination vaccine TWINRIX® (containing both HAV and HBV antigens; manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline). All are inactivated vaccines.
Vaccine
Main article Hepatitis A vaccine
The Hepatitis A vaccine, Avaxim, protects against the virus in more than 95% of cases and provides protection from the virus for ten years. The vaccine contains inactivated Hepatitis A virus providing active immunity against a future infection.[1]