(Newport) – The Northern Kentucky Health Department is declaring a Hepatitis A outbreak as infection numbers jump in the region.
Officials say they are particularly concerned about one case of the virus that was confirmed in a worker at the Newport Syndicate who handled food recently.
They say an investigation found that this worker handled food when they were infected and anyone who ate there between July 25 and August 11 should get vaccinated.
The Hepatitis A vaccination is readily available in Boone, Campbell, Kenton and Grant counties. The Northern Kentucky Health Department says getting vaccinated is one way to stop the spread of the illness.
The illness is an infection of the liver and it can cause a lack of appetite, nausea, discolored urine and light-colored stool.
Usually the virus spreads when someone eats an object that has been infected. Representatives with the Northern Kentucky Health Department say this particular outbreak is linked to drug use and homelessness.