Health department says Mark Pi’s has reported case of hepatitis A

Bartholomew County health officials have diagnosed a case of hepatitis A in an employee who handled food at Mark Pi’s China Gate Restaurant in the FairOaks mall, 2106 25th St.

An investigation has found that the employee worked while ill from May 15 through May 20.

While the health department states is is relatively rare for restaurant patrons to become infected with the hepatitis A virus due to an infected food handler, anyone who consumed food or drink at Mark Pi’s during those dates is recommended to get a vaccination within 14 days of exposure.

A vaccination clinic is set at the Nursing Division Office of the Bartholomew County health Department for those with potential exposure. The clinic will be 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at the offices, 2675 Foxpointe Drive, Suite B.

Anyone who can’t attend the vaccination clinic during that scheduled time should contact their personal medical provider or the health department’s nursing division for an appointment before May 29.

Mark Pi’s China Gate is working with health officials to prevent any new cases from this reported case and the restaurant is open after being disinfected, health officials said.

The case of hepatitis A is the second reported this year at a local restaurant that has resulted in a vaccination clinic being held.

About 400 doses of hepatitis A vaccines were administered by the Bartholomew County Health Department at a clinic in early May after a hepatitis A case was reported at Amazing Joe’s restaurant, 2607 Central Ave.

Hepatitis A is a highly-contagious liver infection caused by a virus that can range from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a severe illness lasting a few months, according to the Indiana State Department of Health.

The disease can bring a wide variety of symptoms, which range from fatigue and loss of appetite to abdominal pain and fever, that usually appear two to six weeks after someone is infected.

From Jan. 1 through May 3, there were 18 confirmed cases of hepatitis A in Bartholomew County, while 1,730 local residents were vaccinated through both public and private sources during the same period, according to the ISDH website.

For more on this story, see Thursday’s Republic.