Hepatitis Risk: Indiana Pizza Hut
According to a story in The Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne, Indiana), more than 2,600 people crowded the Allen County Fairgrounds this weekend to receive treatment for hepatitis A after a Pizza Hut employee was diagnosed with the disease Thursday, five days after last going to work. The Pizza Hut employee worked at the Fort Wayne, Indiana, Pizza Hut at 5735 Coventry Lane, near the Interstate 69 and U.S. 24 interchange.
The treatment administered was an antibody shot called immune globulin, or "Ig," which greatly reduces the risks of getting the disease if given within 14 days of exposure. In this case, the people who could benefit from the treatment were those who ate at the Fort Wanyne, Indiana, Pizza Hut between August 12 and August 19. Customers of the Indiana Pizza Hut who ate at the restaurant before August 12 should watch for symptoms of hepatitis A.
Symptoms of hepatitis A may include fever, tiredness, loss of appetite, nausea, abdominal discomfort, dark urine, and jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes). Symptoms usually last less than 2 months; a few persons are ill for as long as 6 months. The average incubation period for hepatitis A is 28 days (range: 15-50 days). Learn more about hepatitis A on the Pritzker | Ruohonen website, www.pritzkerlaw.com/hepatitis.
Hepatitis A can cause serious injury, including inflammation of the liver, which can be fatal. Restaurants and other eating establishments are responsible for making sure food handlers wash their hands thoroughly after using the restroom. Employees who have diarrhea, nausea, or other symptoms of hepatitis A or other foodborne illnesses should be sent home. Hepatitis A can be prevented if good sanitation practices are followed.
Pritzker | Rouhonen is one of the few law firms in the United States that practices extensively in the area of food poisoning litigation. The firm has collected millions of dollars for hepatitis A victims and other victims of food poisoning. To contact Pritzker | Ruohonen, call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or e-mail fhp@pritzkerlaw.com.
Source: Ashley Rhodebeck, 2,600 get hepatitis shots after eating at pizzeria, The Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne, Indiana), August 28, 2006.
