title: Prevalence of antibodies against hepatitis A virus among new immigrants in Israel.
abstract: Israel, located in a region endemic for hepatitis A virus (HAV), recently absorbed a large population of immigrants who came from the former USSR. To assess the risk of high morbidity in this population a serosurvey of HAV antibodies was undertaken. Serum samples were collected from 965 new immigrants, of whom 664 came from the European, non-endemic region, and 301 from the Asian and Caucasian endemic regions of the former Soviet Union. They were compared to 240 Israelis. Each population was divided into six age groups: 1-9, 10-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, and 50 years of age and older. The Asian/Caucasian immigrants and the Israeli population were found to share similar characteristics. In both groups, antibodies to HAV (anti-HAV) were present in the 1-9-year-old age group and reached maximum prevalence (90% and 86.7%, respectively) in the 20-29-year-old age group. In contrast, among the European immigrants anti-HAV was first found in the 10-19-year-olds and peaked (93%) in the age group of 50 years and older. It is concluded that immigrants originating from the European part of the former USSR may require vaccination against hepatitis A.
authors.affiliation: Central Virology Laboratory Public Health Services, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel.
authors.forename: Y V
authors.initials: YV
authors.lastname: Karetnyi
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mendelson
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shlyakhov
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rubinstein
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Golubev
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Levin
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sandler
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schreiber
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Rubinstein
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Shif
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology*; D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D006507:Hepatovirus / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007557:Israel / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012306:Risk; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies