title: General epidemiological parameters of viral hepatitis A, B, C, and E in six regions of China: a cross-sectional study in 2007.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Viral hepatitis is a serious health burden worldwide. To date, few reports have addressed the prevalence of hepatitis A, B, C, and E in China. Therefore, the general epidemiological parameters of viral hepatitis remain unknown.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this cross-sectional study, we performed a serological prevalence analysis of viral hepatitis A, B, C, and E in 8,762 randomly selected Chinese subjects, which represented six areas of China. The overall prevalence of anti-Hepatitis C virus antibody (anti-HCV) was 0.58%, which was much lower than was estimated by WHO. The prevalences of Hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg), anti-Hepatitis B virus surface protein antibody (HBsAb), and anti-Hepatitis B virus core protein antibody (HBcAb) were 5.84%, 41.31%, and 35.92%, respectively, whereas in the group of subjects less than 5 years old, these prevalences were 1.16%, 46.77%, and 8.69% respectively, which suggests that the Hepatitis B virus (HBV)-carrier population is decreasing, and the nationwide HBV vaccine program has contributed to the lowered HBV prevalence in the younger generation in China. Meanwhile, a large deficit remains in coverage provided by the national HBV immune program. In addition, our data suggested the possibility that HBsAb may not last long enough to protect people from HBV infection throughout life. The overall prevalence of anti-Hepatitis A virus antibody (anti-HAV) and anti-Hepatitis E virus antibody (anti-HEV) were as high as 72.87% and 17.66%, respectively. The indices increased with age, which suggests that a large proportion of Chinese adults are protected by latent infection. Furthermore, the pattern of HEV infection was significantly different among ethnic groups in China.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study provided much important information concerning hepatitis A, B, C, and E prevalence in China and will contribute to worldwide oversight of viral hepatitis.
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Xuanwu District, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Yongdong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Xiaojing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Yongzhen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Ruiguang
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.forename: Yonghui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Fengwei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yue
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shengli
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005843:Geography; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D017957:Hepatitis A Virus, Human / Q000276:immunology; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000276:immunology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D016751:Hepatitis E / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D016752:Hepatitis E virus / Q000276:immunology; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies