Rate of hepatitis B seropositivity following mass vaccination in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Universal vaccination of all neonates against hepatitis B virus has been implemented in the Islamic Republic of Iran since 1993. To evaluate the efficacy of the programme, 2 large seroepidemiologic surveys were conducted before and after mass vaccination on a representative sample of 1/1000 of the population. The overall seropositivity rate showed no significant decline between 1991 and 1999 but in the age group 2-14 years the rates reduced significantly (1.3% versus 0.8%, P < 0.05). Interestingly, we observed a significantly higher decline in hepatitis B virus carrier rate in rural (1.5% versus 0.6%) than urban areas (1.1% versus 0.9%). Universal vaccination significantly decreased the carrier rate among young children in this country.
Zali
M R
MR
Research Centre for Gastroenterology and Liver Disease, Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran. nnzali@hotmail.com
Mohammad
K
K
Noorbala
A A
AA
Noorimayer
B
B
Shahraz
S
S
Sahraz
S
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D002353:Carrier State / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research; D006306:Health Surveys; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D032541:Mass Vaccination / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011159:Population Surveillance; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012423:Rural Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D014504:Urban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens