Acute Hepatitis A

You answered:

B Her children are a highly unlikely source of her exposure to HAV since they have not shown any signs of jaundice.

This answer is incorrect. Although infection with HAV causes jaundice in more than 70% of cases in adults, fewer than 10% of children younger than 6-years of age will develop jaundice. Thus, hepatitis A in children may present as a non-specific viral illness, and these children can transmit HAV to adult contacts. Approximately 5% of hepatitis A cases in the United States are associated with daycare exposures.

Choose another answer:

A Because serologic testing for hepatitis A antibody is likely to be negative this early in the illness, a stool or serum PCR test for HAV would best confirm a diagnosis of acute HAV infection.
C It is probable that her exposure to HAV occurred within the last 30 to 50 days.
D The degree of the elevation in her hepatic aminotransferase levels suggests she is at risk for chronic hepatitis A infection.

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