BMJ  2006;332:1509-1510 (24 June), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7556.1509-b

Letter

Indigenous hepatitis E virus infection in England and Wales

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Palmer et al undertook a qualitative risk assessment of the emerging zoonotic potential of porcine hepatitis E virus (HEV).¹ They recommended enhanced surveillance of non-A, non-B, non-C hepatitis after noting that sporadic cases of HEV may be missed in humans as testing is not routine in the UK without a history of foreign travel.

We investigated cases of HEV in England and Wales to describe the epidemiology and study possible risk factors for the acquisition of indigenous infection. Between 1 January 2005 and 30 June 2005 the Health Protection Agency HEV reference laboratories confirmed 181 cases of acute hepatitis E, including five deaths in patients with underlying serious medical conditions. Travel to an endemic area was recorded for 69 cases, so further enquiries were made into the remaining 112 cases with an unknown travel history.

Twenty five (14%) patients had not travelled outside the United Kingdom in nine . . . [Full text of this article]

hannah.lewis@hpa.org.uk, Health Protection Agency, Centre for Infections, London NW9 5EQ

Health Protection Agency, Centre for Infections, London NW9 5EQ

Health Protection Agency Heartlands Hospital, Birmingham B9 5SS

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