Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A is a liver infection that is spread by a virus in faeces (poo). It is spread mainly through contaminated food or poor hand-washing but can also be passed on easily through sex. During sex, it is mainly passed on:

• when licking skin, condoms or sex toys that have small amounts of faeces on them;
• during oral-anal sex (rimming);
• when giving oral sex after anal sex.

Gay and bisexual men with multiple partners are particularly at risk.

Avoid getting hepatitis A by:

• washing your hands after sex (ideally your buttocks, groin and penis too);
• changing condoms between anal and oral sex;
• using latex gloves for fisting;
• not sharing sex toys.

You should contact your GP if you have symptoms of hepatitis A or are concerned that you have been exposed.

• Symptoms

  Symptoms of hepatitis A can appear up to eight weeks after exposure to the risk and include:

  • Flu like symptoms
  • Nausea
  • Diarrhoea
  • Tiredness
  • Itchy skin
  • Stomach pain
  • Jaundice (your skin and the whites of your eyes are yellow)

  Hepatitis A can be unpleasant, but it’s not usually serious and most people make a full recovery within a couple of months.

  However, it can occasionally last for many months and, in rare cases, it can be life threatening if it causes liver failure.

• Vaccination

  Vaccination against hepatitis A is available for gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men through GUM clinics.

  Vaccination | Sexual Health NI (hscni.net)

• Complications

  Unlike other types of viral hepatitis, hepatitis A does not cause long-term liver damage, and it doesn’t become an ongoing (chronic) infection.

  In rare cases, hepatitis A can cause a sudden (acute) loss of liver function, especially in older adults or people with chronic liver diseases.