title: Vaccination against hepatitis B virus in children and adolescents in a pediatric hospital.
abstract: Vaccination against hepatitis B has become compulsory in Italy and is routinely administered in outpatient clinics of Local Health Service. In the setting of a pediatric hospital 205 children (less than 10-year-old) and 144 adolescents (10-19-year-old) have been vaccinated with anti-HBV recombinant yeast-derived vaccine (Engerix B 10 U.I. at 0.1 and 6 months in children and 20 U.I. in adolescents). Anti-HBs titers were evaluated 1 month after least dose. Geometric mean titer (GMT) was 9500 mU/I in children and 18,000 in adolescents; 99.85% of subjects had a protective anti-HBs titer (10 mU/I or more) at one month after the third dose and 89.1% had titers of 1000 mU/I or more. Only 9.7% of subjects had adverse events, mainly (75%) at the injection site, anyway of trivial importance, without any difference of sex and age. Anti-hepatitis B yeast-derived vaccine is highly immunogenic, without relevant adverse events; the hospital setting is appropriate to participate to the program of vaccination in pediatric age.
authors.affiliation: Servizio di Igiene, Ospedale Bambino Gesù, Roma.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Catania
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Di Ciommo
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Concato
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000276:immunology*; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013997:Time Factors; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: C075654:Engerix-B; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic