HEPATITIS-A AS AN OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD

Few studies have been carried out to evaluate the role of hepatitis A virus (HAV) as an occupational hazard. Our analysis of data on occupational diseases in Germany showed that hepatitis A ranks as third among infectious occupational diseases. Morbidity based on the frequency of compensation (15.2%) was in the same range as that observed for hepatitis B (19.7%). In another study, data were collected on anti-HAV prevalence among 2293 hospital workers in southwest Germany. Anti-HAV prevalence of hospital staff responsible for patient care and that of the general population were comparable, while food-handlers under the age of 30 years had a higher degree of anti-HAV prevalence. When an evaluation of anti-HAV prevalence data was carried out on persons younger than 30 years who comprised subsets of the medical staff, the relative risk was: charwomen 4.2, food-handlers 2.49, and paediatric nurses 1.84, showing that they had higher prevalence rates than nurses 1.25, physicians 1.09 and laboratory assistants 0.93. Vaccinations for the prevention of hepatitis A should therefore reach individuals that have an increased occupational risk: food-handlers, health care workers in infectious diseases and paediatrics, medical staff in laboratories handling stool samples, medical charwomen and, according to previously published work, staff of day care centres and sewerage workers.