title: Serological survey of hepatitis B immunity in healthcare workers in Catalonia (Spain).
abstract: Healthcare workers (HCW) are exposed to preventable infectious diseases, notably hepatitis B (HB). The aim of this study was to determine the immunity of HCW against hepatitis B. We made a seroprevalence study using a self-administered survey and obtained blood samples. Antibodies against the HB surface antigen (anti-HBs) and against the HB core antigen (anti-HBc) were studied. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. The adjusted OR were calculated using logistic regression. Of the 644 HCW who participated (29.7% physicians, 38.7% nurses, 13.4% other clinical workers and 18.3% non-clinical workers), 46.4% were primary care workers and 53.6% hospital workers. The overall prevalence of anti-HBs was 64.4%. HCW aged <25 y had a significantly higher prevalence (86.7%) than those aged 35-44 y (adjusted OR 3.40; 95% CI 1.06-10.90). The prevalence of anti-HBc was 4.1%, and increased with age. Significant differences were found for HCW aged >44 y with respect to those aged 25-34 y. 75.6% of HCW stated they were vaccinated, but only 39.3% had a vaccination card. In HCW who stated they were unvaccinated, 10.8% had a vaccinated serological pattern (anti-HBc-negative and anti-HBs -positive). Written, updated vaccination records are essential to reliably determine the vaccination status.
authors.affiliation: a Departament de Salut Pública , Universitat de Barcelona , Barcelona , Spain.|b CIBER Epidemiología y Salud pública (CIBERESP) , Madrid , Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Domínguez
authors.affiliation: c Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya, Generalitat de Catalunya , Barcelona , Spain.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Urbiztondo
authors.affiliation: a Departament de Salut Pública , Universitat de Barcelona , Barcelona , Spain.|d Adult Vaccination Centre, Hospital Clínic , Barcelona , Spain.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bayas
authors.affiliation: a Departament de Salut Pública , Universitat de Barcelona , Barcelona , Spain.|b CIBER Epidemiología y Salud pública (CIBERESP) , Madrid , Spain.|c Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya, Generalitat de Catalunya , Barcelona , Spain.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Borrás
authors.affiliation: b CIBER Epidemiología y Salud pública (CIBERESP) , Madrid , Spain.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Broner
authors.affiliation: e Departament de Medicina Preventiva i Epidemiologia. Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebrón , Barcelona , Spain.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Campins
authors.affiliation: f Departament de Microbiología , Hospital Clínic , Barcelona , Spain.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.affiliation: g Departament de Medicina Preventiva I Epidemiología , Hospital Germans Trías i Pujol , Badalona , Spain.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Esteve
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013030:Spain; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens
keywords: healthcare workers; hepatitis B; nosocomial transmission; seroprevalence; vaccination