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Hepatitis A Virus (HAV)

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Hepatitis A Virus (HAV)

Hepatitis A infection is an acute disease of the liver caused by the Hepatitis A virus (HAV) and is found worldwide.

HAV infection is prevalent in many resource-limited countries and is among the most common preventable infections acquired by travellers. Tools for prevention of HAV infection include vaccination and attention to hygienic practices.

Hepatitis A cannot be distinguished from other types of viral hepatitis based on clinical or epidemiological features and therefore serology for HAV is commonly included in investigations for acute hepatitis. Serological testing can also be used to determine immunity arising from past infection or vaccination.

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Clinical Details

Transmission of Hepatitis A infection is mainly through the faecal-oral route with the risk of person-to-person transmission being highest among household or sexual contacts of cases. Spread may also occur from ingestion of contaminated food or water. The incubation period is on average 28 days, with the period of infectivity ranging from 1-2 weeks before the onset of jaundice to 1 week after. Faecal shedding may be prolonged in children and immunosuppressed people.

Infection is often mild and self-limiting and can be asymptomatic in most children below the age of 6 years. HAV infection may be more severe in the immunosuppressed, those with chronic liver disease or chronic Hepatitis B or C infection and in the elderly. Acute liver failure is also rarely associated with HAV infection.

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At Enfer Medical, we have integrated a cutting-edge and fully automated WASPLab® (Walk Away Specimen Processor) that has significantly enhanced our testing capabilities to ensure the highest of quality when processing patient samples.
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WASPLab® at Enfer Medical
Our entire microbiology workflow has been optimized using automation and highly sophisticated robots to ensure uninterrupted incubation for rapid bacterial growth and improved turnaround times for patients.
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Regular STI screening facilitates early treatment and reduces the long-term consequences of infection.
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Sample Type &
Volume Required

Blood (serum/plasma) with 1mL minimum guidance.

Enfer Medical

Tests/Assays

Enfer Medical offers the anti-HAV assay, a chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay (CMIA) used for the qualitative detection of IgG antibody to hepatitis A virus in human serum and plasma. This test is CE-IVD certified.

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Patient

Request Form

For clients using the Enfer Medical Client Portal, the Enfer Medical Patient Request Form (PRF) will be generated when you have completed your “Test Request” within the portal linked below.

Enfer Medical Portal

Please note that samples suspected of containing high risk pathogens such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis should be clearly identified on the form and packed separately from other samples.

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24 hours

Results are available on the next working day.

7 Days a Week

This assay is available seven days a week.

Packaging

The packaging/preparation of samples for delivery to the laboratory are required to be in adherence to all national regulations for the safe transport of biological materials. HSE guidance can be reviewed HERE.
There are specific packaging instructions and labelling requirements requiring triple packaging including:

  • Primary leak-proof container – tube or vial containing the sample.
  • Secondary watertight container, with absorbent material, intended to protect the primary container.
  • Outer container protects the secondary container.
  • Patient Request forms must be placed between the secondary container and the outer shipping container.


Further information on the packaging/preparation of samples for delivery to the laboratory is contained within the Enfer Medical Laboratory User Manual which clients are provided with.

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Storage & Stability

Samples must be tested within 14 days of collection and stored at 2-8°C.

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Transporting
Samples

In addition to the packaging of samples, the transport/delivery of clinical samples to the laboratory is required to be in adherence to all national regulations for the safe transport of biological materials. Enfer Medical provides a fully compliant logistics service, aligned with clients’ testing requirements.

Prompt transport of specimens:
To ensure prompt testing of samples and release of results within the published test turnaround times, samples should arrive to the laboratory by 18:00. Test turnaround time is measured from receipt of the sample at the laboratory until the time the authorised results are reported to users.

Acceptance/Rejection
of Samples

In rare cases specimens may not be suitable for testing on arrival to the laboratory. In that case the sample will be rejected at the receipt stage and the service user will be notified immediately and an explanation as to why the sample could not be processed will be provided. Reasons why samples cannot be processed include but are not limited to:

  • Samples received beyond the stability limits and/or not at the correct temperature indicated for each test.
  • Incorrect sample type received.
  • Leaking samples, sample not received or sample insufficient for analysis as stated below within sample requirements.
  • Non-compliant samples or request forms i.e. those missing sample date information, missing sample test request and/or missing sample site/type information.
  • Samples received without the necessary patient identifiers.
Clients will be provided with guidance on Sample Receipt Anomalies.

Our Services

Service
Health & Wellness
General health and wellness testing can include a variety of tests, depending on the needs of the individual or recommendations of
Find Out More
Service
Sexual Health
Regular STI screening facilitates early treatment and reduces the long-term consequences of infection.
Find Out More
Service
Respiratory Health
Rapid early pathogen identification has important treatment and infection control implications. See our range of tests here.
Find Out More
Service
Reproductive & Female Health
Hormonal analysis is hugely beneficial to identifying problems that can arise during the reproductive years.
Find Out More
Service
All Services
View the full suite of services at Enfer Medical here.......
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Result Values:
Qualitative results for HAVAb IgG will be reported as:
Qualitative results
  • DETECTED
  • NOT DETECTED
  • INVALID
Please note that Hepatitis A is a notifiable disease under the Infectious Diseases (Amendment) Regulations 2020 (S.I. No. 53 of 2020) February 2020.

Please refer to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre for the Case Definitions for Notifiable Diseases:

HPSC Link
Accessing

Your Results

Following receipt at the Laboratory, results should be available on the next working day and will be reported to the referring clinician via the Enfer Medical Client Portal or in a format agreed with clients.

Client Login

Established clients can login to the portal using the link above.

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Our Services

Service
Health & Wellness
General health and wellness testing can include a variety of tests, depending on the needs of the individual or recommendations of
Find Out More
Service
Sexual Health
Regular STI screening facilitates early treatment and reduces the long-term consequences of infection.
Find Out More
Service
Respiratory Health
Rapid early pathogen identification has important treatment and infection control implications. See our range of tests here.
Find Out More
Service
Reproductive & Female Health
Hormonal analysis is hugely beneficial to identifying problems that can arise during the reproductive years.
Find Out More
Service
All Services
View the full suite of services at Enfer Medical here.......
Find Out More