Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver, usually an infection caused by one of three viruses.
Type A hepatitis is what we previously called infectious hepatitis. This virus is shed in the faeces and spreads from person to person by contamination from faecal matter. It has an incubation period of about 30 days.
To protect immediate contacts of those with this type of hepatitis, an injection of gamma globulin may be given. This is prepared from human serum collected by the Blood Bank and, in Australia, extracted at the Commonwealth Serum Laboratories. It contains antibodies to the virus and can give short-term protection over two to three months.
Type  hepatitis, formerly called serum hepatitis, is due to a different virus and has a much longer incubation period, around 90 days. It is usually spread by contact with the blood.
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