Hepatitis B Surface Antigen Seroprevalence Among Children in Papua New Guinea, 2012–2013

Abstract

Abstract. Approximately 8% of the population in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. To decrease the burden of chronic HBV infection, a national 3-dose infant hepatitis B vaccination program was implemented starting in 1989, with a birth dose (BD) added to the schedule in 1992. To assess the impact of the hepatitis B vaccination program, we conducted a serosurvey among children born after vaccine introduction. During 2012-2013, a cross-sectional stratified four-stage cluster survey was conducted to estimate hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) prevalence among children 4-6 years of age. We collected demographic data, vaccination history, and tested children for HBsAg. Of 2,133 participants, 2,130 children had vaccination data by either card or recall: 28% received a BD; 81% received 3 vaccine doses. Of 2,109 children providing a blood sample, 60 (2.3%) tested positive for HBsAg. This is the largest, most geographically diverse survey of hepatitis B vaccination and HBsAg seroprevalence done in PNG. Progress has been made in PNG toward the Western Pacific Regional goal to reduce the prevalence of chronic HBV infection to 1% by 2017 among 5-year-old children. Vaccination efforts should be strengthened, including increasing BD coverage and completing the 3-dose series.

Changes in hepatitis B virus antibody titers over time among children: a single center study from 2012 to 2015 in an urban of South Korea

“…Compared with other countries, the observed prevalence was lower in the present study than in Papua New Guinea (2.3% in 2012–2013) and Tajikistan (0.4% in 2010), which are high endemic areas [ 18 , 19 ]. In Henan Province in China, the HBV prevalence among children in 2012 was 0.8% [ 20 ], demonstrating that HBsAg positivity is reduced by the introduction of routine vaccination.…”

Sero-prevalence of hepatitis B virus markers and associated factors among children in Hawassa City, southern Ethiopia

“…Children with history of vaccination had lower risk of having HBV infection compared to their counterparts. This result was similar with the study conducted in Papua New Guinea [ 31 ], Uganda [ 32 ], Pakistan [ 33 ] and Nigeria [ 34 ]. The study result emphasizes the importance of receiving full HBV vaccination to protect against the infection.…”

Prevalence of chronic hepatitis B in Oro Province, Papua New Guinea

“…( 8 ) A nationwide, four-stage cross-sectional cluster survey among 2109 children aged 4–6 years during 2012–2013 showed an HBV seroprevalence of 2.3%, which is higher than the WHO Western Pacific regional goal of < 1% for children under 5 years. ( 9 ) In our study, the prevalence was 3.29% among children under 5 years and 4.72% in children under 10 years, which are also higher than the WHO goal. The coverage of vaccination against HBV at birth in PNG is only 31% because of factors such as lack of vaccine and of adequate refrigeration.…”