Prepared Food Feb 2017

Page 36

© stock.adobe.com/au/Maksim Shebeko

Hepatitis A

Janette Woodhouse

and the foodservice industry Hepatitis A is the only common vaccine-preventable foodborne disease. Should food service workers be vaccinated to minimise the risks of them contaminating the foods they handle?

epatitis A is a viral infec-

selling them in Lower Saxony, sickening 83.

sibly a redness on the injection site or a mild

tion affecting the liver

• 10 cases of epidemiologically linked

fever. The Australian Immunisation Handbook

that spreads through the

hepatitis A involved a food handler at

(NHMRC 2008) recommends hepatitis A vac-

faecal-oral route. While the

a ready-to-eat foods cafe in Melbourne.

cinations for:

virus is endemic in the

Bill Marler, managing partner of Marler

third world, the hygiene

Clark, a Seattle, Washington, based law firm

and sanitation practices in the developed

that specialises in foodborne illness cases, is

• all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

world mean that most people in Australia

advocating that foodservice workers should

children between 18 months and six years

and New Zealand reach adulthood without

be vaccinated against hepatitis A.

having been exposed to the virus.

Being resistant to heating and freezing, the

• travellers to endemic areas, which means developing countries;

of age in north Queensland; • workers in rural and remote Indigenous

According to the Hepatitis Australia web-

hepatitis A virus can survive for several hours

site: “Infection resulting from contaminated

outside the body and persists on the hands

• child day-care and pre-school personnel;

food or water, or an infected food handler

and in food for even longer. Compounding this

• the intellectually disabled and their carers;

is rare in Australia.” However, infection via

is the problem that those with the disease

• healthcare workers employed in paediatric

this route is certainly not unknown. Only last

are infectious for about two weeks before

wards, intensive care units and emergency

year, berries sourced from China and Chile

they develop any symptoms. So they can

departments that provide for substantial

and repackaged at Patties Foods’ Victorian

be handling food and spreading the disease

populations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait

facility were implicated for causing a hepatitis

before they are aware that they are infected.

Islander children and nursing and medi-

A outbreak and in New Zealand Fruzio Mixed

In fact it takes 15–50 days for symptoms of

cal staff on rural and remote Indigenous

Berries were recalled due to hepatitis A con-

hepatitis A to show after infection (average

communities;

tamination. Now, in the US, frozen strawber-

time 28–30 days).

communities;

• sewage workers;

ries from Egypt have sickened at least 140.

The world is no longer a large place.

And it is not only frozen berries that have

More and more foods are shipped around

• injecting drug users;

the globe, many from developing countries,

• patients with chronic liver disease of any

been the source of hepatitis A outbreaks.

• men who have sex with men;

• Five died, one required a liver transplant

and people are also travelling internationally

and 500 were sickened by green onions

to an extent never before seen. It is easy to

imported from Mexico in 2003.

pick up hepatitis A when travelling to less

pooled plasma concentrates.

developed countries, come home, go back to

As many prepared meal manufacturers’

• 165 were sickened by frozen pomegranates

aetiology; and • patients with haemophilia who may receive

work in the food industry and contaminate

clients are among the most vulnerable in

• Epidemiological and laboratory findings

a lot of food before you develop symptoms.

society already, I’m inclined to agree with Bill

suggest a sweet pastry salesperson

Vaccination for hepatitis A is two injections

contaminated products while packing and

and there are very few side effects — pos-

from Turkey.

36 | PREPARED FOOD - February 2017

Marler — vaccination should be the go.

www.preparedfood.com.au


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.