Health authorities are investigating a human case of rat hepatitis E - the first recorded in Hong Kong this year - and have urged the public to observe good hygiene practices and use effective rodent control measures.

A spokesman for the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) said on Saturday that the case involved a 42-year-old man with chronic liver disease, whose blood sample tested positive for the virus on May 5.

“Based on current epidemiological data, the CHP considered that the patient was more likely to have acquired the infection locally,” the spokesman said.

The case marks the first instance of a human infected by rat hepatitis E this year. Over the past five years, Hong Kong has recorded an average of zero to two cases annually.

According to the CHP, the infected patient said he had not been in direct contact with rats, and had not seen any rodents at his home or workplace, both located in Hung Hom.

The South China Morning Post learned that the man lived at Laguna Verde, a private housing estate, and worked at One Harbourfront.

The spokesman added that the man had taken brief trips in April, but no rat hepatitis E virus cases had been reported so far in those destinations. The spokesman did not reveal where those locations were.