Essential
- About fifty cases of hepatitis A virus infection has been identified since June in the Lyon agglomeration and, over the same period, Nantes records at least sixteen cases.
- This disease is mainly transmitted by factories-oral route by water or contaminated foods.
- The vaccine is particularly recommended before traveling in areas at risk or for vulnerable people.
In the Lyon agglomeration, around fifty cases of infection by the hepatitis virus has been identified since June, according to The Regional Health Agency (ARS) Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Over the same period, Nantes records at least sixteen cases.
Resurgence of cases of hepatitis A in France and in Europe
The two cities are on the sanitary alert. Reinforced monitoring has therefore been implemented, as well as a recall of general prevention recommendations. Until now hepatitis A has been rare in France, with an annual impact rate of the declared cases between 1.5 and 3 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, indicates the Ministry of Health. This resurgence is worried and does not only concern France.
Between January and May 2025, cases of hepatitis have increased in several countries of the European Union. This is particularly the case of the Czech Republic (600 confirmed cases), Hungary (530 experienced cases) or Austria (87 confirmed cases), according to the figures of theEuropean Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
Be vaccinated against hepatitis A before traveling
L’hepatitis has is an infectious viral disease, which is characterized by hepatic inflammatory lesions and alterations in reversible liver cells. For the moment, there is no treatment against this pathology, it cures alone after a few weeks or months. Nevertheless, in rare cases, hepatitis can be serious or even deadly.
The transmission of the virus intervenes mainly by foul-oral route, generally by ingesting water or contaminated foods. For example, when an infected person cooks without having been washed with his hands sufficiently. Contagion can also intervene during close physical contact with an infected person, “For example, during oro-year-old sex, specifies theWorld Health Organization (OMS), But it does not spread on the occasion of ordinary contacts between people”.
To limit the risk of transmission, the ARS recommend:
- Wash your hands regularly with soap and soap
- Ensure food cleanliness, always washing them
- Avoid consumption of raw or little seafood
Before traveling in areas where the virus circulates endemically, the ARS advise to be vaccinated. These are Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, Central Asia and Oceania. The site Vaccination-info-service.fr Also recommends injection to people with liver disease, cystic fibrosis, as well as men with sex with other men.
The first symptoms of hepatitis A appear after an incubation period ranging from 15 to 50 days (average 30 days). The sick person can have a fever, significant fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea and jaundice. If you feel these symptoms, you must quickly consult a doctor.