Prevention and control of perinatal hepatitis B virus transmission in ...

Niu MT, Targonski PV, Stoll BJ, Albert GP, Margolis HS. Prevention of perinatal transmissionof the hepatitis B virus. Outcome of infants in a community prevention program. Am J Dis Child1992; 146:793-796.Hepatitis Branch, Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, GA 30333.The objective was to assess the outcome of infants born to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive mothers who received prenatal and infant care in a large, public health care system.Design: follow-up of a cohort of infants born to HBsAg-positive mothers. Setting: large, urbanhospital providing prenatal care and obstetric services to county health departments. Participants:forty-two infants born to HBsAg-positive women. Interventions: prenatal testing of women andimmunoprophylaxis of infants with hepatitis B immune globulin at birth and hepatitis B vaccine atbirth and ages 1 and 6 months. All 42 infants received hepatitis B immune globulin and the firstdose of vaccine. Of forty-one infants (98%) who received the second dose of vaccine, 37 receivedit by age 4 months. Thirty-two infants (76%) completed the three-dose vaccine series by age 12months, and 34 infants (81%) completed the series by age 18 months. The rate of completion ofthe hepatitis B vaccine series was comparable to that of infants receiving the third dose ofdiphtheria-pertussis-tetanus vaccine. Of 26 infants who completed the hepatitis B vaccine seriesand had follow-up serologic testing, 24 (92%) had adequate levels of antibody to HBsAg. Onlyone infant who did not complete the vaccine series had serologic evidence of hepatitis B virusinfection. No infant was HBsAg-positive. Public programs serving urban populations caneffectively deliver hepatitis B immunoprophylaxis to infants born to HBsAg-positive mothers.Onishchenko GG, Dement'eva LA. Spread of hepatitis virus as a threat to national security. ZhMikrobiol Epidemiol Immunobiol 2003; 4:93-99. [Article in Russian]Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Moscow.Information on viral hepatitis A, B and C morbidity in Russia is presented. A distinct trend todecreased viral hepatitis B and C morbidity in 2001-2002 in comparison with the 1990-ies isnoted. Nevertheless, there is still unfavorable prognosis regarding high hepatitis B morbidityamong the population of reproductive age, as well as among adolescents, which increases the riskfor children at an early age. In addition, a new specific feature of hepatitis A spread is observed:morbidity in this infection is shifted to older age groups. The role of vaccinal prophylaxis in thedecrease of hepatitis A and B morbidity, virus safety of blood and its components, the quality ofthe diagnostics of chronic hepatitis, especially hepatitis C, are discussed. The complex of measuresfor the prophylaxis of viral hepatitis is proposed.Otto BF, Suarnawa IM, Stewart T, Nelson C, Ruff TA, Widjaya A, Maynard JE. At-birthimmunisation against hepatitis B using a novel pre-filled immunisation device stored outside thecold chain. Vaccine 1999; 18:498-502.Macfarlane Burnet Centre for Medical Research, Melbourne, Australia.We evaluated the immunogenicity of hepatitis B (HB) vaccine in UniJect, a pre-filled, nonreusableinjection device, stored at tropical temperatures for up to one month and used to give thefirst dose of HB vaccine to newborns. Infants in Tabanan district, Bali, Indonesia, were given theirfirst dose of HB vaccine with UniJect stored out of the cold chain, UniJect stored in the cold chain;or standard syringe, needle and multidose vial stored in the cold chain. Subsequent doses weregiven by usual means and blood samples drawn 4-6 weeks after the third dose. No significantdifferences were found in seroconversion rates or geometric mean titres of HB surface antibodybetween the three groups.33