title: Hepatitis a outbreak in a public school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
abstract: From June 1 to July 1 1999, an outbreak involving 25 cases of hepatitis A occurred in a public school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Since these cases were notified to the State Health Department, the National Reference Center for Hepatitis Viruses (CNRHV) was required to investigate the extent of hepatitis A virus (HAV) dissemination. Blood samples from all students were tested for IgM and total anti-HAV antibodies using a commercial enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA). At the same time, a questionnaire was completed in order to identify possible risk factors for HAV infection. The environmental investigation showed that there was no fecal contamination of the water supply. The epidemiological investigation demonstrated that almost 50% of this population was susceptible to HAV infection and probably person-to-person transmission was the principal mode of virus dissemination. In this situation, a massive vaccination campaign could control the HAV infection.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Virologia, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21045-900, Brasil. lvillar@ioc.fiocruz.br
authors.forename: Livia Melo
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Villar
authors.forename: Maria do Carmo
authors.initials: Mdo C
authors.lastname: Esteves da Costa
authors.forename: Vanessa Salete
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: de Paula
authors.forename: Ana Maria Coimbra
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Gaspar
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005260:Female; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000635:transmission; D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies; D017957:Hepatitis A Virus, Human / Q000276:immunology*; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
chemical_list: D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies