Hepatitis Outbreak Spreads Fear

1
Hepatitis Outbreak Spreads Fear

• By
• Allyn Saari
• CNN News

2
The Nations Largest Outbreak

• What Hepatitis A
• Where Beaver Valley Mall, 25 miles NW of
  Pittsburgh , Pa
• Who Chi-Chis Mexican Restaurant

3
Hepatitis A What is it?

• Each year between 125,000 and 200,000 people
  contract it
• It is a highly contagious liver
• infection
• It causes the liver to become
• inflamed

4
Hepatitis A Symptoms

• Fatigue
• Nausea and vomiting
• Abdominal pain
• Loss of appetite
• Low grade fever
• Muscle pain and itching

5
Hepatitis A Causes

• Contaminated food or water
• Close contact with somebody who is
• already infected
• You are more at risk if
• you are an international traveler

6
Treatments

• Hepatitis A usually clears up in about two
  months, but patients can get an antibody shot,
  greatly reducing the chances of getting the
  disease if given within 14 days of exposure.

7
What caused the Chi-Chis outbreak?

• Initially health officials suspected employees
  who had failed to wash their
• hands were the source
• Health officials now believe that contaminated
  green onions may be the cause

8
Quote from Chi-Chis chief officer, Bill Zavertnik
Weve taken the action to remove them based on
our abundance of caution with regard to green
onions, said Zavertnik, Theres no definitive
information that green onions played a role.
9
Finding the source

• Experts say it may be hard
• to find the source
• Hepatitis A has a long incubation period
• It could spread to more places before its
  detected

10
So far

• 8500 people have received the antibody shot
• 490 people have gotten sick from
• the outbreak
• 3 people have died