In early 2017, HAV outbreaks were identified in San Diego County (490 cases) and Santa Cruz County (73 cases) in California, affecting primarily the homeless and/or illicit drug users. As of October 10, 2017, LAC had identified 12 outbreak-related HAV cases. Due to LACâs proximity to San Diego County, and its own large homeless population, the syndromic surveillance team of the LAC Department of Public Health created a syndrome category and began querying its ED data to monitor for any increase in HAV-related visits.
Objective:
To create a hepatitis A virus (HAV) syndrome category with which to monitor emergency department (ED) visits for situational awareness during a currently emerging Hepatitis A community outbreak in Los Angeles County (LAC), and to evaluate its usefulness.