Twenty-six more patrons of a Chi-Chi's restaurant in the Beaver Valley Mall in Center have lab-confirmed cases of hepatitis A, bringing the total to 34, as of yesterday.

Since Saturday, 12 restaurant employees and at least 10 customers had symptoms of the viral infection. By Monday, the state Department of Health found that eight people were infected.

The department advised people who had eaten at the Beaver County restaurant from Oct. 22 to Sunday to get an injection of immune globulin as a precaution.

According to spokeswoman Jessica Seiders, 30 of the patients are from Pennsylvania, three are from Ohio and one is from West Virginia.

So far, "none of the confirmed cases are employees," she said.

As more testing is done and the medical community becomes aware of the outbreak, "we will probably see an increase in cases [today]," Seiders added.

Some of the patients have been hospitalized.

Hepatitis A virus is shed in the stool of infected individuals. The disease can spread to people who eat food that has been prepared by contaminated hands.

Salads, sandwiches, nachos and other foods are riskier because the ingredients are handled a lot and are not cooked. An infected person could also inadvertently pass the virus on to household contacts.

Symptoms of hepatitis A infection include fever, fatigue, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain and jaundice, or yellowing of the skin and eyes. The disease can begin suddenly and lasts for one to several weeks. Most patients recover without complications.

The health department advised people who have symptoms or are at risk to contact their family doctors.

Immune globulin is effective if given within 14 days of exposure, so people who ate at the restaurant before Oct. 22 will not benefit from it.

The health department is holding public immunization clinics from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. today, tomorrow and Friday at Beaver County Community College, 1 Campus Drive, Monaca.

People who have already had the disease or been vaccinated against hepatitis A are not at risk for new infection.

For more information, call the health department at 1-877-724-3258.