title: Prevalence of hepatitis B in an indigent, multi-ethnic community clinic prenatal population.
abstract: Perinatal infection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) from an infected asymptomatic woman to her offspring is now a preventable disease. A chart review was undertaken to document the prevalence of asymptomatic HBV infection in a high-risk, predominantly minority, indigent, and immigrant family practice clinic population and to evaluate the frequency of accepted known risk factors for those subjects with positive hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) screening tests. Records for 464 pregnant women entering the prenatal program between January 1, 1983, and April 30, 1987, were reviewed. Twenty-three (5.3%) were found positive for the HBsAG, all were asymptomatic. Results of a logistic regression on multiple risk factors for HBV infection revealed that ethnicity was the sole predictor of a positive HBsAg screening test, with 13% of the Asian patients and 1% of the Latino subjects positive for HBsAg. Other historical factors such as previous sexually transmitted disease and past history of transfusion were not predictive. These results reaffirm that a screening program for asymptomatic HBV infection in selected prenatal populations can identify a significant number of infants at risk for risk for perinatal infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Practice, University of California, Davis 95817.
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Arevalo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arevalo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D001213:Asian; D002140:California / Q000453:epidemiology; D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology; D003151:Community Health Centers; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D008489:Medical Indigency; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology; D011295:Prenatal Care; D015995:Prevalence; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens