Hepatitis A in Nelson Mandela Bay and Sarah Baartman districts, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Southern African Journal of Infectious Diseases
| Field | Value | |
| Title | Hepatitis A in Nelson Mandela Bay and Sarah Baartman districts, Eastern Cape, South Africa | |
| Creator | Newman, Howard Tshabalala, Donald Estrada, Guillermo A. Pulido Nguetchueng, Romuald Kom | |
| Description | Background: Hepatitis A is the most common cause of acute viral hepatitis, not only in South Africa, but in many other countries. In South Africa, there is a lack of data regarding the true incidence of hepatitis A, and even fewer data regarding hepatitis A cases requiring hospitalisation. In the Eastern Cape province of South Africa in particular, there is a paucity of published data that could be used to guide public health officials. An analysis of all the laboratory-confirmed cases in the area over a period of time may help to better describe the extent of the problem.Methods: This was a retrospective study analysing the laboratory-confirmed cases of hepatitis A in the Nelson Mandela Bay and Sarah Baartman districts of the Eastern Cape province in South Africa for the three-year period from 2015 to 2017.Results: A total of 194 laboratory-confirmed cases of hepatitis A were identified for the three-year period from 2015 to 2017. Of these, 138 (71%) cases were children 16 years old or younger, with adults accounting for 56 cases (29%). There was no overall seasonality associated with laboratory-confirmed cases of hepatitis A.Conclusions: Hepatitis A is a serious problem in the Eastern Cape region. More studies are needed to determine the exact cause of the continuing epidemic. | |
| Publisher | AOSIS Publishing | |
| Date | 2018-10-25 | |
| Identifier | 10.4102/sajid.v33i5.148 | |
| Source | Southern African Journal of Infectious Diseases; Vol 33, No 5 (2018) 2313-1810 2312-0053 | |
| Language | eng | |
| Relation |
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:
https://sajid.co.za/index.php/sajid/article/view/148/104
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