title: Hepatitis A through E.
abstract: Viral hepatitis is a term commonly used for several clinically similar, yet etiologically and epidemiologically distinct, diseases. Five human hepatitis viruses have been identified. Hepatitis A, B, C, and D are endemic in the United States; hepatitis E is rarely reported in the United States, and most U.S. cases are seen in persons who have traveled to areas where hepatitis E. is endemic. Hepatitis A and E are transmitted by the fecal-oral route; hepatitis B, C, and D are blood-borne diseases. Hepatitis A and B have been recognized as separate entities since the early 1940s and can be diagnosed by serologic tests. Tests are available to detect the antibody to hepatitis C and D virus; no commercial test is available to diagnose hepatitis E. Hepatitis A, B, and D can be prevented by vaccine, but no vaccines are available for hepatitis C or E.
authors.affiliation: Hepatitis Branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Moyer
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Mast
mesh_terms: D019353:Endemic Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening; D012307:Risk Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014611:Vaccination