How does hepatitis A spread?

A person can pass the virus before feeling ill, so transmission may occur in a household, childcare setting, shared meal, or sexual contact. It is not spread through ordinary breathing, coughing, or sneezing. Safe preparation of food, reliable handwashing after using the toilet and before eating, and cleaning shared bathroom surfaces reduce opportunities for spread. Someone may have few or no symptoms yet still pass the infection. Symptoms can include feeling generally unwell, nausea, loss of appetite, and dark urine; these signs do not identify the source of infection by themselves.

Contact a healthcare professional promptly if you have had close contact with someone who has hepatitis A. Ask whether post-exposure vaccination is suitable and whether other household or sexual contacts need advice. Do not prepare food for others while unwell or while a clinician advises that you may be infectious. Wash hands carefully with soap and water; alcohol hand gel is not a substitute after toilet use. A clinician can assess symptoms and arrange a liver function test when appropriate. Read about Hepatitis A Vaccination for prevention guidance.

Arrange medical advice if you develop new nausea, marked tiredness, loss of appetite, yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine, or pale stools, especially after a known exposure. Seek urgent care for confusion, unusual sleepiness, repeated vomiting, severe abdominal pain, or difficulty staying hydrated. These symptoms need assessment because several illnesses can affect the liver and digestion.

Ask: When might I have been infectious? Should my household or sexual contacts be assessed? Is Hepatitis A Vaccination appropriate after this exposure? Do I need a Liver Function Test, and which symptoms should prompt urgent review?