Can hepatitis A be controlled environmentally?
In low-incidence areas, the most effective control is simple hygiene and common sense, coupled with the appropriate use of vaccine. In higher-incidence areas, hygiene must be combined with education and the development of safer water supplies and food preparation systems; mass vaccination may be considered. In highly-endemic areas, where the vast majority of the population is infected in childhood, environmental control is not a realistic target until basic poverty is better managed, and the water and food supplies can be secured.
