Ashton Kutcher's Birthday Crashed By Hepatitis A

Uh-oh! Ashton Kutcher may have been Punk'd by a trendy New York restaurant. Earlier this month, wife Demi Moore threw her husband a 30th birthday party at Socialista, and it turns out his star-studded guest list may have been exposed to hepatitis:

Today, the New York City Health Department said a bartender at Socialista might have passed hepatitis A to club patrons early this month. The bartender only worked on three nights when he might have been infectious, but one of those nights -- Feb. 7 -- was the night of Kutcher's party.

Hepatitis is a swelling of the liver. Hepatitis A is spread "primarily through food or water contaminated by stool from an infected person," according to NIH.

Hep A is less serious than other forms of the disease, and usually gets better on its own in a few weeks. Still, health officials are recommending vaccination for anyone who may have been exposed. An estimated 700-800 people may have visited Socialista the nights the infected bartender worked, but no additional cases of illness have been identified, the Health Department said. (Note to frugal celebs: The Health Department is offering free shots at P.S. 41 in Greenwich Village this weekend.)

The day manager who answered the phone at Socialista this afternoon told the Health Blog that the bartender apparently got hepatitis on a recent vacation to Honduras, and just found out he had the bug. "We're doing everything we possibly can to make sure that no one comes in contact with this virus," the manager said.

Celebrities in attendance included, but are not limited to, Bruce Willis, Salma Hayek, Madonna, Lucy Liu, Kate Hudson, Molly Sims, Liv Tyler, Gwyneth Paltrow, Eric Dane, his wife Rebecca Gayheart and designer Roberto Cavalli

Comments

[2liveNdie]

03:23 PM on 02/23/2008

Looks like everyone got punkd' to me!

[skyfish]

08:19 PM on 02/22/2008

Demi, your hair extensions look worn out.

[Bystander]

03:44 PM on 02/22/2008

Fortunately, his Hepatitis B overwhelmed the Hepatitis A.

[GrouchoMarxist]

02:07 PM on 02/22/2008

It could be worse. At least gonorrhea didn't pop in, too.

[ObamaRama7]

12:03 PM on 02/22/2008

LOL Stoned College girl stages HUNGER strike rofl:

http://digitalfuntown.squarespace.com/dft-blog/2008/2/21/bloomington-series-hunger-strike.html

[frozenporklander]

12:25 AM on 02/22/2008

That's too bad... Ashton looks very happy with his wifemom.

[cardtosser]

11:48 AM on 02/22/2008

Gives new meaning to the phrase 'bar stool'.

[Issak]

12:30 PM on 02/22/2008

bet your mom don't look like that.

[dora rice]

11:30 PM on 02/23/2008

but then my mom wasn't stupid enough to rob a cradle. The look in their eyes tell me, it's over. Ashton Kutcher finally grew up. Now he is only still grateful for all she has done. But he wishes she would let him go. Ashton sometimes parting is hard to do. Get it over with.

[dora rice]

11:33 PM on 02/23/2008

By the way, when you watch how she has her hands around his arm, they are not lightly on his arm, the fingers are curved like claws holding on to him.....fact.

[aznurse]

11:36 PM on 02/21/2008

Always wash your hands with warm soapy water for a minimum of 15 seconds. (the liquid antibacterial are ok, but soap and water is better.

[CintiBlue]

12:54 AM on 02/22/2008

I sometimes think I've become obsessive with the hand washing, but it does pay off.

[DLSteinhardt]

03:33 PM on 02/22/2008

The charts say at least 20 seconds. Antibacterial liquids are dangerous, because they kill bacteria only selectively, eliminating competition for the stuff they don't kill.

[anastasiabeaverhousen]

08:30 PM on 02/21/2008

If this is true, it is definitely something to consider.

I suffered from Hep-A in the early 1990s. Oysters. I don't even like oysters, but I had a few, much to my future dismay.

I have never been so sick in my life. 6 weeks of feeling like hammered shit. I lost 40 pounds. Couldn't eat. The only position I found some comfort in was a semi-fetal position on the floor.

Truly an awful experience. Avoid it if you can.

[LoRiseAntlers]

12:47 AM on 02/22/2008

Been there,done that.I lost 34 pounds in about the same amount of time.It was horrid.

[Phaedrusnyc]

04:43 PM on 02/22/2008

Wow...and I've been wasting my time with Atkins. ;)
Yes, it's a joke, but I can't be the only overweight person who read these posts and immediately thought, "Where can I get me some oysters?"

[dora rice]

11:37 PM on 02/23/2008

sorry sound awful and painful. I love oysters. But since the hurricane in Louisiana I don't touch Oyster anymore, afraid they might come from the Gulf. The are truly sex food. I used to feel so sexi when I ate them, but it could have been the alcohol I washed them down with. Nothing like ice cold oysters and champagne. The last ones I enjoyed and ate where in Harrods in London. The best oyster yet.

[mijumom]

08:28 PM on 02/21/2008

Why would they recommend vaccination to people who were already exposed? Isn't vaccinating a preventative measure. Will anyone knowledgeable enough to answer my questions somehow end up reading this fluff piece? Doubt it.

[Checquoline]

09:14 PM on 02/21/2008

Well there IS a vaccine and you would think people would take advantage of it. Especially people who eat out a lot but the vaccine won't help you after you get the disease. It has to run its course.

[mijumom]

10:31 PM on 02/21/2008

Some of us are not interested in shooting all of the additives into our veins. Personal choice (especially for an illness that seems manageable.

My point was can the vaccine work retroactively? It appears not. But perhaps they used the word vaccine loosely and were including immune globulin.

Thanks for responding.

[abqnmboy]

10:03 PM on 02/21/2008

Immune globulin may be used for pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis, for example, shortly before entering a disease-endemic area or just after likely HAV exposure. However, passive immunization with immune globulin gives only short-term protection (three to five months) and is relatively costly compared to the long-term immunity from vaccination.

Several vaccines against hepatitis A are now available that are highly efficacious and provide long-lasting protection in adults and in children above one to two years of age.

[UtahLiberal435]

12:25 PM on 02/22/2008

Unfortunately, it only gives increased resistance, not immunity.

Been there.

[dora rice]

11:39 PM on 02/23/2008

and might prevent liver cancer in some cases....

[crbntx]

07:33 PM on 02/21/2008

Ain't no party like a Hep-A party, cuz a Hep-A party don't stop?

[NewFrontier]

07:32 PM on 02/21/2008

Doesn't sound like a crisis to me. Who is making it one?

[CrazyLiberal]

07:31 PM on 02/21/2008

Huh? *YAWN!*

[sigrid13]

08:58 AM on 02/22/2008

Oh for the love of...

If you're not interested in the story; why, why, WHY didn't you just scroll on past? Huh? Why take 2 minutes out of your life that you'll never get back to click on the story (did you read it? I bet you did. HA HA!)and then click on comment, and then type, and then post?

Seriously, I really want to know why. Do you think you're registering your superiority or something? Because when we consider how many total hours of your life YOU waste doing crap like this; you don't look too smart.

[UtahLiberal435]

12:26 PM on 02/22/2008

Because it is, indeed a non-story.

And the headline makes it sound like Ashton Kutchers actually had heptatis A.

It's called media manipulation by readers.

Editors call it the 'conceit' of the story.