‘Hepatitis A’ Cases Moving Closer to Western Kentucky

Kentucky slowly seems to be developing a "hepatitis A problem." The highly contagious infection, which has led to an alert in far eastern Kentucky, is now a huge issue in Louisville.

In fact,  a hepatitis A case stemming from an employee at a Kroger on Dixie Highway who may have been infected led the store to urge shoppers to discard any produce purchased at the store in the month of February.

Needless to say, Jefferson is among the Kentucky counties that are encouraging vaccinations for those who may have come in contact, to their knowledge, with someone who may be infected.

One of those counties, Hardin, is even a little closer to home and, therefore, a little TOO close for comfort.

The Centers for Disease Control defines hepatitis A as "a highly-contagious liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus. It can range from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a severe illness lasting several months. Although rare, hepatitis A can cause death in some people. Hepatitis A usually spreads when a person unknowingly ingests the virus from objects, food, or drinks contaminated by small, undetected amounts of stool from an infected person."

Pleasant, right?

So, it's mere contact that is often the culprit.

I highly doubt that anyone in the immediate tri-state area does his or her regular shopping at the Dixie Highway Kroger in Louisville's Pleasure Ridge Park neighborhood, but this DOES show how quickly and easily the nasty little virus can travel.

And, again, Hardin County is just a couple of counties over.

At the very least, we should be paying attention.