Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the risk of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection among sewage workers from occupational exposure to raw sewage. METHODS: An analytical cross sectional study of 241 company employees with possible occupational exposure to sewage in a large water and sewerage company was carried out. Previous exposure to hepatitis A virus infection was assessed, as were its associations with possible risk factors. RESULTS: Frequent occupational exposure to raw sewage was a significant risk factor for HAV infection, independently of other known risk factors (odds ratio 3.73, 95% confidence interval 1.48 to 9.37). Of 50 employees who reported occupational exposure to raw sewage most of the time, 30 (60%) had had HAV infection. CONCLUSION: Employees who are likely to be at risk of frequent exposure should have their immunity ensured. The salivary assay for IgG anti-HAV used in the study was highly specific and would be suitable for prevaccination testing of older employees, who are more likely to be immune.
Full Text
The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (84.2 KB).
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Behrens R. H., Collins M., Botto B., Heptonstall J. Risk for British travellers of acquiring hepatitis A. BMJ. 1995 Jul 15;311(6998):193–193. doi: 10.1136/bmj.311.6998.193a. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Heng B. H., Goh K. T., Doraisingham S., Quek G. H. Prevalence of hepatitis A virus infection among sewage workers in Singapore. Epidemiol Infect. 1994 Aug;113(1):121–128. doi: 10.1017/s0950268800051530. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Koff R. S. Clinical manifestations and diagnosis of hepatitis A virus infection. Vaccine. 1992;10 (Suppl 1):S15–S17. doi: 10.1016/0264-410x(92)90533-p. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Parry J. V., Perry K. R., Mortimer P. P. Sensitive assays for viral antibodies in saliva: an alternative to tests on serum. Lancet. 1987 Jul 11;2(8550):72–75. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(87)92737-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Poole C. J., Shakespeare A. T. Should sewage workers and carers for people with learning disabilities be vaccinated for hepatitis A? BMJ. 1993 Apr 24;306(6885):1102–1102. doi: 10.1136/bmj.306.6885.1102. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Skinhøj P., Hollinger F. B., Hovind-Hougen K., Lous P. Infectious liver diseases in three groups of Copenhagen workers: correlation of hepatitis A infection to sewage exposure. Arch Environ Health. 1981 May-Jun;36(3):139–143. doi: 10.1080/00039896.1981.10667618. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]