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Hepatitis B - Management
Surveillance
- Acute hepatitis B is a notifiable disease.
- Notify the Health Protection Unit (HPU) of suspected cases of viral hepatitis, providing the person's name, age, sex, and address. Inform the person that this is being done.
- The laboratory will also report each case of newly-diagnosed hepatitis B to the HPU (by telephone or fax, and within 1 working day). A Communicable Disease Report (CDR) should follow. The regional epidemiology unit then forwards the data to the Centre for Infections (formerly the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre and the Central Public Health Laboratory).
- Once the HPU has been informed, it can provide help and advice (specific local arrangements will vary). The HPU may:
- Initiate fact-finding, and collate the required data for risk factors and contact tracing.
- Advise primary care services on follow-up testing, and reinforce the need for referral to a specialist.
- Advise and liaise with primary care services to ensure the appropriate information reaches the appropriate people.
- Agree with the sender of the specimen on how testing and vaccination of contacts will be arranged.
[HPA, 2006]
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