Hepatitis Scare at Trendy NYC Club

On the heels of Kutcher's recent celebrity-packed 30th birthday at Socialista, the downtown hot spot released an announcement alerting revelers who were there on Feb. 7 (the night of Kutcher's party), or Feb. 8 or 11 to get tested and vaccinated for the disease. A Socialista bartender named Leif, who's now in the hospital, was diagnosed with a raging case of Hep A. We're told the Health Department yesterday visited the club that former Bungalow 8 doorman Armin Armiri opened last fall, but Armiri said, "We're not closed down, we're just concerned for our customers." And with good reason - symptoms of the virus include nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, fever, appetite loss and jaundice. That's way worse than a normal hangover.

If you ordered a drink from Socialista on February 7, 8, or 11, beware of hepatitis A! According to the New York City Health Department, the bartender who worked those nights has the liver ailment, which "is spread by putting something in one’s mouth (even though it might look clean) that has been contaminated with traces of fecal matter from an infected person."

In a statement, the health department said patrons who visited the bar after the bartender became infected "is considered to be at risk and needs a preventive shot".

It said the bar owners were co-operating fully and estimated between 700 and 800 people had visited the bar on those nights.