Hepatitis E outbreaks in Burkina Faso and Chad
Since the beginning of the year, a total of 2,503 total hepatitis E cases (45 confirmed) have been reported from two African Union Member States-Burkina Faso and Chad.
In Burkina Faso, the country’s Ministry of Health reported an outbreak of hepatitis E on June 13 with 62 cases (9 confirmed), including three deaths in the Kaya health district, Centre North region.
47 percent of the cases were among internally displaced persons.
The last reported case in Burkina Faso was in 2020.
In Chad, 2,441 total hepatitis E cases (36 confirmed), including 9 deaths have been reported in 2024 to date.
Cases have been reported from 5 refugee camps and 2 refugee transit sites in Adre and Hadjer-Hadid health districts.
25 cases and two deaths were reported among pregnant women.
The clinical course of hepatitis E is similar to that of hepatitis A with no chronic form of the disease. Jaundice, fever, loss of appetite and lethargy are common symptoms.
People are infected primarily through the fecal-oral route, usually through contaminated water or food. There have been several cases of hepatitis E infection in France due to eating raw figatellu, which is made with pig liver.
Much like hepatitis A, the fatality rate is low with the exception of pregnant women where it can reach 20% among those infected in the third trimester. Liver failure is a frequent outcome with pregnant women.
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Hepatitis E is found endemically in countries that have inadequate environmental sanitation. It is most frequently seen in Asia, Africa, Central America and the Middle East.
According to WHO, every year, there are an estimated 20 million hepatitis E infections worldwide, leading to an estimated 3.3 million symptomatic cases of hepatitis E, and 56,600 hepatitis E-related deaths.