Source of hepatitis A outbreak in Campbell County still unknown
April 26, 2005
CLINTON (AP) - Health department officials have not found the source of a hepatitis A outbreak in Campbell County even after interviewing nearly 100 people over the weekend, they said Monday.
The health department opened an emergency clinic last week, and more than 1,500 people were vaccinated, department spokeswoman Carole Martin said Monday.
Local, regional and state health officials interviewed 98 people, including those with and without the disease, about their habits of socializing, shopping, eating out and drug use to determine the cause, said Dr. Paul Erwin, regional director of the East Tennessee state health department office.
No restaurant, including the Clinton Waffle House, has proved to be the source.
"This means that there was not any single event or place that put the larger public at risk of getting hepatitis A," Erwin said. "More importantly, our work this weekend also did not identify any current risk to the public in terms of an ongoing source of hepatitis A."
Hepatitis A symptoms include mild fever, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, tiredness, dark urine and jaundice. It can be spread by poor hygiene and being in contact with someone who has the disease.
