Using senior health professionals as interviewers, a 30-cluster sampling survey was carried out to investigate community perceptions of pilia (the local word for jaundice) in east Delhi (India). Of 416 persons (mostly mothers of children aged < 2 years) interviewed, 339 (81%) were aware of pilia as an illness. Only 322 (77%), 164 (39%) 73 (18%) and 71 (17%) people knew about correct symptoms, dangers, causes and prevention of pilia. Most of the correct responses were related to the faeco -orally transmitted viral hepatitis. Literate respondents were significantly more aware of pilia (chi(2) 52.81, P <0.0001), its symptoms (chi(2) 48.88, P <0.0001), causes (chi(2) 39.34, P <0.0001), dangers (chi(2) 19.3, P = 0.0007), and prevention (chi(2) 60.8, P <0.0001). However, age of the respondents had no significant bearing (P greater than or equal to 0.05) on the correctness of responses. About 293 (70%) subjects considered pilia as a treatable illness; of them, 193 (66%) and 77 (26%) respectively expressed their preference for the 'modern' and indigenous systems of medicine for its treatment. In contrast, 110 (38%) respondents said that they would prefer faith healers for the treatment of pilia. Although only 31 (7%) persons were aware of a vaccine against pilia (hepatitis B vaccine), virtually all agreed to have their children immunized if such a vaccine were made available. The study underscores the usefulness of pilia in lay-reporting of viral hepatitis and epidemiological studies on jaundice-associated illnesses and the need for educating the community about its causes and prevention to increase people's participation in controlling viral hepatitis and other diseases that mainly manifest as jaundice.