Hepatitis B antigen and antibody among staff members of an Israeli hospital and a kibbutz population.
Until recently, hepatitis type B was thought to be transmitted parenterally. However, much evidence has appeared regarding non-parenteral transmission. Hospital personnel are exposed both ways to this disease. We compared the incidence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and antibody (anti-HBs) among 388 workers at a major medical center in Israel with 203 kibbutz residents, using radioimmunoassay procedures. Of the hospital personnel, 1.8% were found to carry the antigen and 23.9% the antibody. In contrast, 0.5% of kibbutz personnel were antigen-positive and 11.8% carried the antibody. The highest incidence of antibody was found among people born in middle-eastern countries outside of Israel. These results show a significant increase in the exposure of hospital personnel to hepatitis B virus. A marked increase in the frequency of sera positive for anti-HBs occurred after the first year of hospital work.
D000367:Age Factors; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005260:Female; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D008297:Male; D010564:Personnel, Hospital; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors; D013997:Time Factors
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens