Trends in the incidence of hepatitis A in Texas, 1986 through 1997

Hepatitis A is one of the most common infections reported in Texas. This study examined the trends in incidence of hepatitis A in Texas for the years from 1986 through 1997. Demographic and clinical data of reported cases were obtained from the Texas Department of Health. Population estimates were obtained from Epigram. Rates were calculated per 100,000 population. For the 1986-1997 period, 33,833 cases of acute hepatitis A were reported. Rates varied considerably by ethnicity and race: Hispanics had the highest average annual rate (32.2 per 100,000), followed by non-Hispanic whites (8.2 per 100,000) and African Americans (6.0 per 100,000). The rate for Hispanics was more than two times higher than the rates for non-Hispanic whites and African Americans in all 11 public health regions in Texas. Children aged 5 through 9 years had the highest rates of hepatitis A. The 3-month period from August through October had the largest reported number of onsets of hepatitis A (P < .01).