[A domestic human case of hepatitis E in Finland]

We describe the first verified domestic HEV case in a previously healthy 53-year-old man who presented a three-day history of upper stomach pain, nausea, fever, arthralgia and fatigue. At the first phase laboratory tests revealed high levels of AST and ALT and at the second phase high levels of bilirubin. Serum was positive for anti-HEV IgM and for HEV RNA confirming the diagnosis of acute hepatitis E. The HEV was genotype 3. Jaundice resolved in three months. In nonendemic areas autochthonous hepatitis E is more common than previously recognized and is possible in patients with acute hepatitis.