Hepatitis A in Poland in 2013

The aim of the study is to assess the epidemiological situation of hepatitis A in Poland in 2013 compared to previous years.

The evaluation was carried out on the basis of the results of the analysis of data from the annual bulletin "Infectious diseases and poisonings in Poland in 2013" and "Vaccinations in Poland in 2013", the information from individual diseases forms and epidemiological investigations forms for hepatitis A outbreaks, sent by sanitary-epidemiological stations to the Department of Epidemiology of NIZP-PZH.

In 2013, 48 cases of hepatitis A were registered in Poland. The incidence per 100,000 inhabitants was 0.12, and in particular provinces it ranged from 0.05 in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie province to 0.26 in the Wielkopolska province. The incidence of hepatitis A for men and women was at a similar level and amounted to 0.13 and 0.12/100,000. In 2013 imported cases accounted for 45.8% of the total number of hepatitis A cases. There were three outbreaks, where the total of 13 people fell ill.

2013 saw a slight decrease in the number of cases compared to the previous year. Besides, there were no significant changes in the hepatitis A epidemiological situation. In Poland, there is still very low endemicity. Since several years, there has been a decline in the number of people vaccinated against hepatitis A. All of this affects the accumulation of a fairly large population of people susceptible to the infection, which may increase incidence. Although the current hepatitis A epidemiological situation in Poland is good, it still requires monitoring, analysis and constant observation within the structured epidemiological surveillance.