Hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection has an acute course of disease. Although the course of hepatitis A showed mild to moderate in children, HAV infection can lead to fulminant hepatitis, which can lead to death in adults. HAV is one of the most common f...
Hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection has an acute course of disease. Although the course of hepatitis A showed mild to moderate in children, HAV infection can lead to fulminant hepatitis, which can lead to death in adults. HAV is one of the most common foodborne infections associated with water contamination and poor hygiene, and has the potential to cause worldwide epidemics. HAV infection is a preventable disease that has developed a safe an effective vaccine. Since December 2010, Korea has designated hepatitis A as an infectious disease in Group 1 and has been operating an integrated surveillance system. Since May 1, 2015, HAV vaccine has been introduced as a universal vaccine. It is inoculated free of charge for babies born after January 1, 2012. Hepatitis A have been increasing between the ages of 10 and 30 years since 1995, and some areas have been identified as endemic areas. Although a region with an average of over 100,000 population statistics can be related to population migration, it is often difficult to find an epidemiological linkage in urban areas. Catch-up vaccination and post-exposure prophylaxis are most appropriate as a national strategy of hepatitis A, but it is necessary to consider various approaches to the management of domestic pollutants such as management of drinking water such as ground water and spring water, and external attractiveness factors such as imported ingredients in the endemic areas. The hepatitis A epidemic is directly related to the prevalence of HAV antibody and may require a strong strategy for catch-up vaccination and post-exposure prophylaxis that fundamentally enhances the HAV antibody prevalence rate. The post-exposure prophylaxis, which can expect a more direct and immediate effect, can reduce the expression of hepatitis A in contacting acute hepatitis A patients and prevent the infection of HAV by blocking the secondary infection. Therefore, more rapid establishment of the strategy for post-exposure prophylaxis is warranted in Korea. To date, the strategy for domestic hepatitis A have been systematically formulated in Korea compared with other country?s strategy for hepatitis A. The effectiveness of epidemiological surveys, which play a pivotal role in the management of infectious diseases, was evaluated. We recommended that the current epidemiological survey types were classified as basic epidemiological surveys and in-depth epidemiological surveys, suggesting a more efficient and systematic epidemiological survey system and reporting the revised epidemiological surveys. We strongly recommend the introduction of the Korean one-health-based cooperation system into the hepatitis A management system actively.