Clinical Signs and Symptoms of Hepatitis A

Key points

  • Most people who get hepatitis A have a mild, short-term illness.
  • Adults are more likely than children to have symptomatic HAV infection.
  • Clinicians should conduct serologic testing on patients if they have signs or symptoms consistent with HAV infection.
  • CDC does not recommend routine hepatitis A screening.
A patient explaining his symptoms to a doctor while the doctor takes notes

Disease presentation

Older children and adults with HAV infection will typically experience symptoms.

Most (70%) of infections in children younger than age 6 are not accompanied by symptoms. When symptoms are present, young children typically do not have jaundice; most (>70%) older children and adults with HAV infection have jaundice. 12

Among symptomatic patients, 10%–15% might experience prolonged or relapsing symptoms up to 6 months after they become infected.13456

Incubation period

The average incubation period for HAV is 28 days (range: 15–50 days).345

Virus survival

Depending on the environmental conditions, the virus can live outside the body for months.6

For the public‎

For general audiences looking for information on hepatitis A signs and symptoms, see Hepatitis A Signs and Symptoms.
Hepatitis A Signs and Symptoms

Common symptoms

Hepatitis A symptoms, which usually last less than 2 months, occur abruptly, and can include:

  • Abdominal pain, nausea, and/or vomiting
  • Dark urine or clay-colored stools
  • Diarrhea
  • Fatigue
  • Fever
  • Jaundice
  • Joint pain
  • Loss of appetite

For detailed guidance on clinical care and treatment for hepatitis A, keep reading.

Clinical assessment

Clinicians should conduct serologic testing on patients if they have signs or symptoms consistent with HAV infection and/or if they think they may have been infected with HAV. CDC does not recommend routine hepatitis A screening.

Print
Content Source:
Division of Viral Hepatitis
  1. Wasley A, Fiore A, Bell BP. Hepatitis A in the era of vaccination. Epidemiol Rev 2006;28:101–11. Epub 2006 Jun 14. Review.
  2. Schiff ER. Atypical clinical manifestations of hepatitis A. Vaccine 1992;10 Suppl 1:S18.
  3. Halliday ML, Kang LY, Zhou TK, et al. An epidemic of hepatitis A attributable to the ingestion of raw clams in Shanghai, China. J Infect Dis 1991;164(5):852–9.
  4. Neefe JR, Gellis SS, Stokes J Jr. Homologous serum hepatitis and infectious (epidemic) hepatitis: studies in volunteers bearing on immunological and other characteristics of the etiological agents. Am J Med 1946;1:3–22.
  5. Krugman S, Giles JP, Hammond J. Infectious hepatitis: Evidence for two distinctive clinical, epidemiological, and immunological types of infection. JAMA 1967;200(5):365–73.
  6. Abad FX, Pinto RM, Bosch A. Survival of enteric viruses on environmental fomites. Appl Environ Microbiol 1994;60(10):3704–10.