Fri, Dec. 09, 2005
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES – Employees of a popular downtown restaurant were urged to get immune globulin shots after an employee was diagnosed with hepatitis A and three others began showing symptoms, the county Health Department announced Friday.
People who ate at Cafe Pinot from Nov. 25 through Dec. 4 should see a doctor and get the injections, officials said.
The shot should be given with 14 days of exposure to be effective.
Cafe Pinot employees received the shots and the restaurant was allowed to remain open.

“The source of the illness among the four employees is unclear at this time,” said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, the county’s director of public health.
After learning the news, the restaurant owners “worked to take every precaution to further safeguard our guests and other associates,” said a statement from Joachim Splichal, chef and founder of the Patina Group, which operates Cafe Pinot.
“There is no risk to the public, and no reason to suspend operation,” Splichal said.
Hepatitis A is a viral infection of the liver that can cause jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever. The virus most often is spread through fecal-oral contact, such as touching hand to mouth after using the bathroom or shaking the hands of infected people who did not wash properly.
There have been several outbreaks of hepatitis A in recent months. Thirteen people were affected by an outbreak at another downtown restaurant in September and 19 fell ill in October after eating contaminated lettuce at a catered event, officials said.
Fielding said all produce, even prepackaged goods that are labeled as having been washed, should be rinsed in cold, running water before eating.