Hepatitis B virus infection in children.
Recent increases in Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection prompted us to characterize HBV-infected children in Ireland and to audit management, by reviewing prospectively gathered data. Of 46 children (29 [63%] male), median age at presentation was 8.1 years (range 0.6-17.6), monitoring duration was 22.5 months (range 1-101), 23/46 (50%) were European (including 9 [19.6%] Irish), 15 (32.6%) African and 9 (19.6%) Asian. Acquisition was vertical (25/46 [54.3%]), horizontal (5/46 [10.9%]), unknown (16/46 [34.8%]). HBV-DNA was >100,000,000 cpm in 20/32 (62.5%) with chronic infection. Hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) was detected in 32/44 (72.7%). We estimate that universal neonatal vaccination (UNV-HBV) could have prevented 22% of cases, and could limit further horizontal HBV spread. This supports the recent introduction of UNV-HBV.
O'Gorman
C S
CS
Our Lady's Children's Hospital, Crumlin, Dublin.
O'Connell
K
K
Broderick
A M
AM
Butler
K M
KM
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007494:Ireland / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies
D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines