Acute hepatitis A in a pregnant woman at delivery

Abstract

We report a case of acute hepatitis A in a 30-year-old pregnant woman with hepatitis onset occurring at time of delivery. Both neonate and her mother were isolated from other patients. The hepatitis A virus (HAV) genotype was Ia. Total anti-HAV antibodies and HAV RNA were not detected from the newborn in a serum collected the first day of life; neither clinical symptoms nor increased ALT levels were observed during the six first days of life. The mother quickly and fully recovered. Hepatitis A has been scarcely reported during pregnancy; four cases, to our knowledge, have been previously described close to delivery. HAV vertical transmission seems to be very rare. No severe outcome has been described in mothers and newborns. Nevertheless, HAV infection might represent a concern in pregnant women in industrialized countries in view of its mortality rate among susceptible adults and its potential involvement in nosocomial outbreaks.