Boy at makeshift camp in Piraeus found with hepatitis

An 8-year-old boy has been transferred from the makeshift refugee camp at Piraeus port to Aghia Sofia Children’s Hospital after being diagnosed with hepatitis A. This is the second such case detected among refugees in Greece.

Hepatitis A can cause mild illness, with symptoms that last for a couple of weeks, to severe illness, lasting for months and, in some cases, becoming fatal.

There were a median number of 89 cases of hepatitis A per year in Greece between 2004 and 2012. Health authorities have begun a vaccination program, while the boy’s relatives are also being monitored by doctors.

The head of the Piraeus Medical Association, Nikos Malesiotis, told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency that volunteer doctors examined some 600 refugees, including 155 children, between March 7 and 14.

Greek authorities said Tuesday that there were nearly 4,000 people at the camp, which is centered around the passenger terminal at Piraeus.