Eliminating Perinatal HBV Transmission: We're Almost There

In a large multicenter study, prophylaxis prevented 99% of transmissions, and receiving fewer than three doses of HBV vaccine was a risk factor for transmission.

Perinatal infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) results in chronic disease in 90% of cases. Postexposure prophylaxis with hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG) and three doses of vaccine is extremely effective in preventing transmission from mother to infant. To identify factors associated with transmission, researchers analyzed prospectively collected data for almost 16,000 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive pregnant women and their infants in the CDC's Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Programs. Demographic and laboratory data and the timing of HBIG and HBV vaccines were analyzed for each mother-infant pair.

Among 9252 mother-infant pairs with HBsAg data, 1.1% of infants acquired perinatal infection. Transmission was higher (6.7%) in…

Reviewing Author

Deborah Lehman, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Deborah Lehman, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Eliminating Perinatal HBV Transmission: We're Almost There

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Reviewing Author