Viral hepatitis: lack of transmission in an Athenian School.
In the 1975-76 school year, 3 cases of icteric hepatitis occurred almost simultaneously in 2 grades of an Athenian school. An initial survey of the 2 classes approximately one week later found that 88 of 94 children were susceptible to type A hepatitis. No further clinical cases occurred. A second survey at the end of the school year revealed only 2 subclinical hepatitis A virus infections: one coincident with the overt cases in November, and a second from extramural exposure in February. Two carriers of hepatitis B virus in class A were not associated with serologic evidence for communicability of that agent in this setting. Testing of faecal specimens for agents possibly responsible for epidemiological interference with the spread of hepatitis A virus was unsuccessful. Nevertheless, the hypothesis of Band that other agents may interfere with transmission of hepatitis A virus deserves further study.
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000635:transmission; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000635:transmission; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male