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Hepatitis A targets the liver. | Image courtesy of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health notified residents Wednesday of possible exposure to hepatitis A at a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant in Monterey Park.
An employee of the bar and grill at 4000 Market Place developed a hepatitis A infection, but no additional cases have been identified, health officials said.
Based on the employee’s job tasks and display of symptoms while working, health officials urged vaccination for anyone not already immune to the virus who ate food or drank beverages at the restaurant between Nov. 13 and 22.
Officials also urged restaurant customers to monitor themselves for symptoms that include fever; weakness; fatigue; nausea; loss of appetite; jaundice, which is yellowing of the skin or eyes; stomach pain; vomiting; dark urine; pale stools; and diarrhea.
“Hepatitis A is a highly contagious liver infection,” according to a health department statement.
“Although rare, hepatitis A can cause death in some people,” the statement said. “Hepatitis A usually spreads when a person unknowingly ingests the virus from objects, food, or drinks contaminated by small, undetected amounts of stool from an infected person.”
Receiving a vaccination after exposure — ideally no more than 14 days — can lessen the risk of developing an infection. People who think they may have been exposed to the virus should contact a local pharmacy or their health care provider for a hepatitis A test.
Officials are working with the restaurant to make sure employees are vaccinated, according to the health department.
More information is available at publichealth.lacounty.gov/acd/diseases/hepa.htm.
