An emergency inoculation campaign was mounted Friday and Monday by the Davis County Health Department when an outbreak of infectious hepatitis was detected at a Clearfield day-care center.
Health department officials said they believe the outbreak has been controlled and don't anticipate the illness will spread.The department was notified of the outbreak at the ABC Preschool & Daycare Center on Friday, health director Dr. Enrico Leopardi said. Three health department nurses were dispatched to inoculate the school's students and faculty.
Two teachers and one student have been diagnosed as having hepatitis A and another student is suspected of having the viral liver infection, but it hasn't been confirmed yet, according to the department.
The illness was first diagnosed in a teacher, Leopardi said. Most of the school's 85 students were inoculated with gamma globulin shots on Friday, but some students, who did not have parental permission at the time, were not inoculated until Monday.
Hepatitis A is a liver infection with symptoms of stomach pain, jaundice, nausea and loss of appetite. Fatalities are rare, the department director said.
"We're pleased with the cooperation shown by the operators of the day-care center," Leopardi said. "Appropriate control measures have been taken. The situation is under control, and there is nothing to be alarmed about."
The health department urges preventive health measures be taken by both faculty members and students at day-care and preschool centers, including basic personal hygiene steps and frequent hand washing during the day.