Minnesota hepatitis outbreak rises to 49 cases

By NewsDesk @infectiousdiseasenews

The number of hepatitis A outbreak cases in Minnesota has risen to 49 as of Nov. 1, according to health officials.

Seven out of 10 cases required hospitalization and no deaths were reported.

Hennepin County has seen the most cases with 16, while the other 15 affected counties are in single digits.

Since May 2019, Minnesota has seen an increase of hepatitis A cases, which we have now identified as an outbreak. Minnesota’s outbreak-associated cases have risk factors consistent with the national outbreaks.

People at high risk in the current outbreaks include:

People who use injection/non-injection drugs.

People experiencing homelessness or unstable housing.

People who are currently or were recently incarcerated.

Men who have sex with men (MSM).

The best way to prevent hepatitis A infection is through vaccination.

Nationally, since the outbreaks were first identified in 2016, 30 states have publicly reported 27,634 and 275 deaths.





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