It can also be spread from contaminated ice, shellfish, fruits and vegetables, and other uncooked foods. The symptoms of Hepatitis A include fever, lack of appetite, abdominal discomfort, dark urine, and jaundice. A person infected with Hepatitis A could exhibit all or none of these symptoms. If no symptoms exist, it is diagnosed through laboratory tests. Generally, older people tend to have more severe symptoms which could cause them to be hospitalized.
Children usually exhibit no symptoms, but are still able to transmit the disease.
Symptoms of Hepatitis A can last between two and six months and patients can experience relapses. Hepatitis A is a preventable disease, but more than 134,000 Americans contract it each year and community-wide outbreaks continue to occur. Cooked foods do not harbor the disease unless they are contaminated after cooking. In order to protect water supplies from contamination, chlorination is recommended. The easiest way to prevent Hepatitis A is to practice proper handwashing techniques and use vaccines that have been developed against it.