Friday, January 07, 2011

Communion Wafers May Have Been Contaminated By Hepatitis A

Parishioners at a Roman Catholic church in Long Island are being offered quite a belated Christmas present: a vaccine against hepatitis A from the local health department.

As the New York Times reports, there’s a worry that people who received communion at two Christmas Day Masses were exposed to the virus via communion wafers.

(Here’s the announcement from the Nassau County Department of Health.) 

The county health commissioner tells the paper that an unidentified person who touched the wafers used during two services was subsequently diagnosed with the virus. 

No word on whether it’s a member of the clergy or someone else who received or assisted with communion.

Hepatitis A can’t be spread by casual contact. 

But it can be contracted by eating something that was handled by an infected person — hence, the wafer concern. It’s most commonly spread by oral contact with contaminated stool, according to the CDC.

The CDC recommends routine hep A vaccination for all kids at 12 months. 

Adults should get the vaccine if they have certain risk factors for the disease, such as a pattern of frequent travel to areas where the virus is common, long-term liver disease or street drug use.

Men who have sex with other men should also get vaccinated.

The good news is that the disease usually clears up on its own in a couple of weeks. It’s not as serious as other forms of hepatitis, such as B and C.

SIC: WSJ/USA