Czech Republic reports more than 700 hepatitis A cases in 2025, Eclipsing 2024 total
According to the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC), a significant increase in hepatitis A virus (HAV) infections has been reported in Austria, Czechia, Hungary, and Slovakia between January and May 2025.
The rise in HAV infections is primarily affecting adults experiencing homelessness, individuals who use or inject drugs, and those living in poor sanitary conditions who have limited access to healthcare. Cases have also been reported among members of the Roma communities in both Czechia and Slovakia.
The four affected countries have reported in excess of 2,000 cases of hepatitis A in 2025. Slovakia has reported 880 cases reported in 2025 alone. This year, Austria has recorded 87 confirmed cases, including three deaths, already exceeding its 2024 total. In Czechia, 706 cases have been confirmed in 2025, already surpassing last year’s total of 636, including six deaths, with young children being the most affected group. Hungary has reported 530 cases this year, mainly among adults.
"In principle, there is nothing new in the ECDC report from the point of view of the Czech Republic, said national chief hygienist Barbora Macková.
“The State Institute of Health and the Hygiene Service have already transparently informed about the situation both in a press conference and a press release. Regular monthly overviews of monitored infections are published, where the numbers of reported hepatitis infections are also continuously published. To date, 706 hepatitis A infections have been reported in the Czech Republic- the highest numbers concentrated in Prague (151), Central Bohemia (113), and the Moravian-Silesian Region (96).
“The situation in the Czech Republic is not dramatic, but at the same time it is not appropriate to underestimate it in any way, we are continuously monitoring it both from an epidemiological and virological point of view by performing sequencing. An average of 30-40 new reported hepatitis A infections are increasing in the Czech Republic every week. This situation can be described as a higher incidence and it is necessary to count on the fact that the situation will not change significantly in the foreseeable future. It is necessary to adhere to consistent hand hygiene, regional hygiene stations are implementing targeted anti-epidemic measures, especially in areas with a higher risk of infection, such as excluded localities, communities of homeless people or drug addicts. Active search for outbreaks and epidemiological investigations are underway, hospitals and laboratories were asked through the chief hygienist to provide samples to ensure the aforementioned sequencing. Post-exposure vaccination is also underway, as part of the epidemiological investigation, and in cooperation with the non-profit sector, we offer preventive vaccination in risk groups.
“Vaccination offers reliable protection, which we can recommend as an important protection against hepatitis A even when traveling abroad, for example during summer holidays, because in many countries, especially with lower hygiene standards, hepatitis A is a relatively common disease. The current ECDC recommendations have been implemented in the Czech Republic for many weeks and we reiterate that this is not a new situation for us.”
Viral hepatitis A, formerly known as infectious jaundice, is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis A virus.
The incubation period, i.e. the time from infection to the development of symptoms, is 14-50 days, most often 30 days.
Hepatitis A and the Hep A vaccine
Symptoms: In most cases, the course of the disease in adulthood is more severe than in childhood. Symptoms are usually present at the end of the incubation period. The most common symptoms are flu-like (i.e. fever, headache, muscle pain, fatigue, runny nose, cough, conjunctivitis), stomach and intestinal (loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sometimes constipation, belching, bloating, pressure in the right hypochondrium). More rarely, there are joint symptoms (pain, swelling), skin (itching, sometimes rash), nervous (headache, inflammatory involvement of one or more nerves). After this phase announcing the onset of the disease, the actual phase of the disease begins, when the symptoms worsen and "jaundice" often appears. At the same time, the patient has darker urine, light stools and itchy skin. Sometimes the above-mentioned uncharacteristic flu, stomach and intestinal symptoms may not be present at all and the patient is brought to the doctor by yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes.
If "jaundice" does not develop, we are talking about the anicteric form, which is particularly serious due to the risk of spreading the infection to the patient's contacts in his environment. Persons with this form of infection are often actively sought when examining contact persons with hepatitis A. Almost all patients in the acute phase (in the stage with developed symptoms of the disease) have an enlarged liver, sensitive to palpation, sometimes also an enlarged spleen or lymph nodes.
Uncomplicated viral hepatitis A lasts 2-4 weeks , recovery takes several weeks. Isolation in an infectious disease ward is mandatory and its duration depends on the severity of the clinical course. In general, children's diseases are milder than adults' diseases. It is important that viral hepatitis A does not become chronic (has no permanent consequences). However, about 10% of patients develop complicated courses, and the disease and recovery then last several months. In very exceptional cases, a so-called fulminant course can occur, which is very rapid and leads to liver failure and death. Mortality is low (0.1-0.3%), but may be higher (1.8%) in adults over 50 years of age or people with underlying chronic liver disease.
Treatment is only symptomatic, which mainly includes dietary measures, restriction of physical activity (bed rest in the acute stage), alcohol abstinence and dietary measures in accordance with the recommendations of the attending physician. After the disease, lifelong immunity occurs, i.e. protection against repeated disease.
The source of the disease is an infected person, the contagiousness is highest towards the end of the incubation period and a few days after the appearance of clinical symptoms. The virus is present in the blood of the infected person for a short time, only a few days before the onset and rarely a few days after the onset of clinical disease. Prolonged virus excretion, up to 6 months, is common in children and chronically ill people.
This also results in the most common routes of transmission of viral hepatitis A:
Transmission through the feces of an infected person plays the most serious role, whether it is direct transmission from person to person, e.g. through dirty hands, or indirect, through dirty (contaminated) water or food and dirty objects (doorknobs, handles, handles, etc.).
In the case of contaminated water, it is not only about drinking it, but also salads, fruits or other uncooked foods that have been washed with contaminated water before eating can be dangerous. Ice cubes made from contaminated water are also dangerous. Blood transmission is rare.
Incidence: Viral hepatitis A occurs worldwide, more in countries with low hygiene standards. It mainly affects children and young adults. The Czech Republic is one of the countries with a relatively low incidence, however, for example, in 1979 more than 40,000 people were infected after consuming frozen imported strawberries. The decreasing incidence of viral hepatitis A in the population results in an increasing percentage of people without protective antibodies who are highly susceptible to hepatitis A infection, especially children and young adults.
In the Czech Republic, the incidence is traditionally highest among preschool and school children, but in the late 1990s, increased incidence was recorded in the age groups 15-19 and 20-24. This was mainly due to the increasing number of adolescents and young adults with risky behavior, especially drug addicts. The transmission of the infection not only in this population occurs mainly due to poor hygiene conditions.
The number of diseases that travelers bring from abroad has also increased, especially from exotic countries with lower hygiene standards, but even staying in first-class hotels in countries with a high incidence of viral hepatitis A is not a guarantee of protection against this infection.
Preventive measures include
vaccination, i.e. creating the body's resistance to infection,
increasing and maintaining personal hygiene (of course, frequent hand washing is essential, especially after using the toilet and before each meal),
health education,
supply of safe drinking water and food,
selection and screening of blood donors .
Vaccination against viral hepatitis A
Safe and effective vaccines are available in the Czech Republic for children and adults. Basic protection is achieved after one injection. To obtain long-term protection against infections caused by the hepatitis A virus, a second dose is required, which is administered 6-18 months after the first dose. The vaccines are injected into the shoulder muscle.
Vaccination against viral hepatitis A is not among the vaccinations covered by the state, but you can receive a contribution from your health insurance company.
In an extraordinary epidemiological situation, vaccination may be declared as extraordinary, paid for by the state.
A combination vaccine is also available on the market, which allows simultaneous vaccination against hepatitis A and B.
Vaccination is recommended
people traveling to areas where this infection occurs,
workers who come into contact with human biological material, especially feces (e.g. sewage workers),
people with chronic liver disease,
with a congenital blood clotting disorder (hemophilia),
drug users,
men who have sex with men,
persons in contact with a person with hepatitis A,
persons working in the food industry,
children from 1 year of age,
and anyone who wants to gain protection from disease.
It is recommended, especially for travelers, to avoid eating raw salads and vegetables, fruits that you cannot peel yourself, ice cream, raw or semi-raw seafood (oysters are especially dangerous), generally undercooked foods, and not to use ice in drinks. It is not recommended to use water from public taps, even for brushing your teeth. It is a good idea to follow the basic rule of the World Health Organization for preparing food in exotic countries: “boil, bake, peel, or leave it alone”.
Precautions for patients and contacts:
In case of illness or suspicion of illness with viral hepatitis A, isolation of the patient is ordered.
Persons suspected of infection are subject to quarantine measures, medical supervision or increased health surveillance.
People who have been in contact with the patient are under medical supervision for the longest incubation period, i.e. 50 days from the last contact.
Vaccination is recommended for people in direct contact with HAV as part of the prevention and post-exposure prophylaxis of the disease. This involves administering the vaccine to those who have come into contact with an infection they have not yet had or are not vaccinated against. Post-exposure prophylaxis is intended to prevent the development of the disease. Vaccination is reliable if it is carried out no later than 14 days after exposure.