HILO — One part of the recent hepatitis A outbreak has nearly ended — the shortage of available vaccine.
“There was a spike in people wanting to do the vaccination, so we’ve been doing many more than normal,” said Michele Yonemori, pharmacist at Shiigi Drug Company in Hilo. “At first there was a shortage.”
Those kind of effects from the outbreak have taught health officials valuable lessons.
“This outbreak was the result of a contaminated food product,” State Epidemiologist Dr. Sarah Park said in an interview Thursday.
Restaurants are where most people became infected, from eating raw scallops. But Park said it turned out scallops inside vacuum-sealed packages were likely contaminated with hepatitis A before they arrived here.
The Hawaii Department of Health said in mid-August that the scallops, from the Philippines, supplied to Genki Sushi restaurants on Oahu and Kauai were probably the source of the ongoing outbreak. Those restaurants were cleared to reopen on Friday.
Vaccine providers in general ran low of vaccine because they hadn’t expected the outbreak and surge in vaccine interest, said Yonemori. But supplies have been beefed up, and there’s plenty available locally to meet demand now.
However, “We’re still hearing that there’s increased interest in vaccination,” Park said.
As of Wednesday, the Department of Health has confirmed 252 cases of hepatitis A linked with the current outbreak, all adults, and 66 of those people required hospitalization.
Registered nurse Chad Shibuya, director of infection prevention at Hilo Medical Center, put that number in context, noting that about 2,500 people get sick with hepatitis A in a given year nationwide.
“We’ve had to learn a lot about hepatitis, also, in this process,” he said.
For example, he said, children typically have been the ones who get vaccinated, which might be the reason, so far, that only adults have been affected during the current outbreak.
Park added that no vaccinated members of the military, or vaccinated children of military personnel, have been diagnosed with hepatitis A. However, she noted, unvaccinated military spouses have indeed been diagnosed.
“I think it really speaks volumes to the effectiveness of the vaccine,” she said.
One restaurant on Hawaii Island, Sushi Shiono in Waikoloa, was impacted in July when a worker tested positive from an infection that likely happened on Oahu. All other employees at the restaurant tested negative and returned to work. A Hawaiian Airlines flight attendant was also diagnosed.
Hepatitis A symptoms can include: fever; fatigue; loss of appetite; abdominal discomfort; dark urine; diarrhea; yellow skin and eyes; pale-colored stools; vomiting; and headaches and/or body aches.
People wishing to get vaccinated can check with their health provider or pharmacy. Yonemori said it’s possible to get a vaccination without a prescription. But pharmacies won’t be able to submit an insurance claim without one.