title: Epidemiology of hepatitis B and hepatitis B virus infection in United States children.
abstract: Before the era of routine hepatitis B vaccination, an estimated 24,000 children acquired hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection each year in the United States. Childhood hepatitis B immunization has led to significant declines in the incidence and prevalence of HBV infection in U.S. children. Because the greatest burden of hepatitis B is caused by complications of hepatocellular carcinoma and cirrhosis in adults who were infected with HBV as children, most of the benefits of vaccination have yet to be realized. Reaching the goal of eliminating HBV transmission to children likely will require increasing vaccination coverage, ensuring timely administration of postexposure immunoprophylaxis to prevent more perinatal infections, and continued evaluation of the impact of immunization recommendations.
authors.affiliation: Division of Viral Hepatitis, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
authors.forename: Colin W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Shepard
authors.forename: Lyn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Finelli
authors.forename: Anthony E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Fiore
authors.forename: Beth P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Bell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003140:Communicable Disease Control / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D017589:Immunization Programs / Q000458:organization & administration; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D018570:Risk Assessment; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines