Nine people, including the owner and several regular customers, were infected during a hepatitis A outbreak at a restaurant in Prague.

The establishment is located in the Prague 6 district and has been closed as a precaution.

The case was uncovered by the Prague Hygiene Station, which carried out an investigation together with specialists in food hygiene and epidemiology. Inspectors identified problems related to personal and operational hygiene inside the restaurant.

According to officials, the restaurant’s owner and several regular patrons were among those diagnosed with hepatitis A. The health authority has not disclosed the name of the establishment, as the epidemiological investigation is still ongoing.

Petra Batók, a spokesperson for the hygiene station, said the restaurant was not officially ordered to close. The owner decided to shut the venue as a preventive measure after the inspection results were discussed.

Health workers are now tracing contacts of the infected individuals. The public is considered safe, but people who may have been in high-risk contact will be contacted directly by the hygiene station.

“Vaccination against viral hepatitis A is an effective preventive measure, and we recommend it,” Batók said, adding that epidemiologists are continuing their investigation into the possible source of the infection.

Hepatitis A spreads through the fecal-oral route, often when a contaminated person fails to wash hands properly after using the toilet.

The virus can then be transferred to objects such as shopping baskets, public transport handles, or railings. Medical texts describe the hepatitis A virus as highly resistant, capable of surviving for extended periods, especially in cold and humid conditions.

Symptoms do not always appear immediately. The incubation period can last up to 50 days, and some infected people may show no signs of illness, including the typical yellowing of the skin. Those diagnosed are usually required to stay in a medical facility for several days before continuing treatment in home isolation.

Vaccination is available both preventively and after potential exposure to an infected person, which can eliminate the need for quarantine in many cases.

This year, doctors in the Czech Republic have recorded 643 cases of hepatitis A infection, according to the latest data from the State Institute of Health. In Prague alone, seven new cases were registered last week, though the number has been declining for two consecutive weeks.

Since the beginning of the year, 159 infections have been reported in Prague, compared with 1,377 cases recorded during the previous year. Authorities say the hepatitis A epidemic that intensified in 2024 is expected to gradually ease in 2025.

Last year, Czech medical facilities treated 3,255 patients with hepatitis A, and 36 deaths were recorded. This year, two deaths associated with the disease have been confirmed.

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