Water-Borne Infectious Hepatitis

Abstract

SINCE the nineteenth century there have been epidemics of jaundice that have been attributed to water-borne transmission. The evidence accumulated in recent years is sufficiently complete to warrant recognition of this mode of spread of infectious hepatitis as an epidemiologic entity. In this regard, infectious hepatitis is the first viral disease for which a water-borne route of infection has been generally accepted. Such a route has been postulated for poliomyelitis,¹ but no studies have been reported in which conclusive evidence was obtained.² It is believed that person-to-person contact is the most frequent type of transmission of infectious hepatitis, and there . . .