Public Health Alert - Hepatitis A, Gympie

Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service Public Health Unit is managing multiple cases of positive Hepatitis A in a family cluster in Gympie.

The original exposure occurred at Gympie Hospital with the hospitalisation of a person returning from overseas in January 2023.

SCHHS Public Health Unit is liaising with schools the positive cases attended providing them with parent letters, information and advice.

Hepatitis A is an acute viral infection, which can be spread from person to person by the faecal oral route (the faeces of an infectious person has contaminated something that is put into someone else’s mouth).

The symptoms of hepatitis A are fever, generalised aches and pains, nausea, lack of appetite, and abdominal discomfort. Dark urine is usually the first specific sign of acute hepatitis A, followed a day or two later by jaundice (yellow skin and eyes) and pale coloured bowel motions.

The severity and duration of illness varies however most people feel better by the third week.

The disease is usually more serious in adults than children. In adults, hepatitis A occasionally presents as a serious, disabling disease lasting several months. Most young children with hepatitis A have few, if any, symptoms so the infection can go unrecognised.

They can, however, easily infect other children and adults.

The time between when a person is exposed to the virus to when they may develop symptoms averages 4 weeks, with a range of 2 – 7 weeks.

If your you or your child develops any of these symptoms, please go to your GP or Gympie Emergency Department.

For further information, please go to Queensland Health website Hepatitis A (health.qld.gov.au)