New Mexico hepatitis A outbreak spreading

The New Mexico Department of Health said Friday that two cases of hepatitis A infection confirmed in Rio Arriba County are related to an ongoing outbreak that continues to primarily impact drug users and people experiencing homelessness.

The agency said the outbreak, centered in Bernalillo County since November, is blamed for 145 acute infections with two associated deaths. The infections include six in Santa Fe County and now two in Rio Arriba County, a news release said.

The risk of infection is associated with poor sanitation and hygiene and is primarily transmitted through close contact, including sexual contact, with an infectious person or sharing of contaminated food and drink.

Hepatitis A is a contagious liver disease that results from infection with the hepatitis A virus. It can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a severe illness lasting several months.

The health department said hepatitis A is usually spread when a person ingests fecal matter, even in microscopic amounts, from contact with objects, food or drinks contaminated by the feces or stool of an infected person.

Infection typically causes fever, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, dark urine and yellowing of the skin and eyes. The news release said those at increased risk for hepatitis A include persons who use injection and noninjection drugs, persons experiencing homelessness or transient housing, persons with direct contact with a person who has hepatitis A and men who have sex with men.

“Vaccinating people at risk of exposure is the most effective tool we have to prevent the spread of hepatitis A infection during an outbreak,” said New Mexico Department of Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel.