Increasing hepatitis B vaccination coverage among healthcare workers in Italy 10 years apart.
BACKGROUND
In Italy, vaccination against hepatitis B virus infection was strongly recommended for healthcare workers since 1985. Update findings on vaccination coverage are lacking.


OBJECTIVE
To assess current vaccination coverage against hepatitis B in this job category.


METHODS
In 2006, 1,632 healthcare workers randomly selected in 15 Italian public hospitals completed a self-administered precoded questionnaire.


RESULTS
The overall vaccination coverage was 85.3%, a figure higher than the 64.5% observed in 1996. Vaccine coverage showed a significant downtrend (p<0.01) from the Northern (93.1%) to the Southern (77.7%) areas. Logistic regression analysis showed that residence in the North (Odds ratio 4.2; 95% confidence interval 2.6-6.7) and youngest age (Odds ratio 4.5; 95% confidence interval 2.6-7.8), both were independent predictors of vaccine acceptance.


CONCLUSIONS
Ten years apart, vaccine coverage has markedly increased, closely paralleling the downtrend in the incidence of acute B hepatitis among healthcare workers in Italy.
Stroffolini
T
T
National Centre of Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299, 00161 Rome, Italy. tommaso.stroffolini@iss.it
Coppola
R
R
Carvelli
C
C
D'Angelo
T
T
De Masi
S
S
Maffei
C
C
Marzolini
F
F
Ragni
P
P
Cotichini
R
R
Zotti
C
C
Mele
A
A
D000328:Adult; D000488:Allied Health Personnel; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016272:Occupational Health; D016017:Odds Ratio; D014611:Vaccination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends
D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines