title: Hepatitis A outbreak in Ba subdivision, Fiji, October-December 2013.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A cluster of suspected hepatitis A cases was notified to the Fiji Ministry of Health on 22 October 2013. An outbreak investigation team was mobilized to confirm the existence of an outbreak of hepatitis A and advise appropriate public health interventions.
  
  
  METHODS
  A case definition for the outbreak investigation was established, and standardized data collection tools were used to collect information on clinical presentation and risk factors. An environmental assessment was also conducted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 160 clinical cases of hepatitis A of which 15 were laboratory-confirmed. The attack rate was 349 per 10,000 population in the Nukuloa nursing zone; there were no reported deaths. Residents of the Nukuloa settlement were 6.6 times more likely to present with symptomatic hepatitis A infection (95% confidence interval: 3.8-12.6) compared with residents of another village with a different water supply.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is the first significant hepatitis A outbreak documented in Ba subdivision and possibly in Fiji. Enhanced surveillance of hepatitis A may reveal other clusters in the country. Improving the primary water source dramatically reduced the occurance of disease in the affected community and adjacent areas.
authors: School of Public Health and Primary Care, College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Fiji National University, Suva, Fiji .
authors: Aneley
authors: A
authors: Getahun
authors: Fiji Ministry of Health, Suva, Fiji .
authors: Eric
authors: E
authors: Rafai
authors: Australian Volunteer for International Development, Suva, Fiji .
authors: Maria Ximena
authors: MX
authors: Tolosa
authors: Fiji Centre Communicable Diseases Control, Ministry of Health, Suva, Fiji .
authors: Akanisi
authors: A
authors: Dawainavesi
authors: Ba Medical Subdivision, Western Health Services, Suva, Fiji .
authors: Anaseini Maisema
authors: AM
authors: Tabua
authors: Ba Medical Subdivision, Western Health Services, Suva, Fiji .
authors: Josefa
authors: J
authors: Tabua
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D005367:Fiji / Q000453:epidemiology; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D014881:Water Supply / Q000592:standards; D055815:Young Adult