Abstract
BackgroundHepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is highly endemic in China and it threats human health seriously. The hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) prevalence among women of childbearing age plays an important role in mother to child transmission of HBV, as 30% ~50% of chronic carriers can be attributed to maternal-infantile transmission. However, there are few studies which have reported on the prevalence of HBsAg among women of childbearing age in China. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of HBsAg and its associated risk factors among rural women of childbearing age in Hainan, which is the highest hepatitis B virus endemic province in China.MethodsA cross-sectional, population-based study, which included 12393 rural women aged 15 ~ 49 years, enrolled by a multistage stratified cluster sampling, was carried out in Hainan province, China, from November 2007 to December 2008. Blood samples were obtained from each study participant, and screened for HBsAg.ResultsThe overall HBsAg prevalence of childbearing age women was 9.51%. Risk factors for HBsAg positivity among rural women were: lower education level (OR=1.206), lower family monthly income (OR=1.233), having an HBsAg-positive family member (OR=1.300), without an immunization history (OR=1.243), tattooing (OR=1.190), body piercing (OR=1.293), vaginoscopy history (OR=1.103) and history of induced abortion (OR=1.142).ConclusionsThere is a high HBsAg seroprevalence rate among rural women of childbearing age in Hainan province. Hence, it is necessary to take preventive measures to reduce the seroprevalence of HBsAg and to control its associated risk factors.
Highlights
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is highly endemic in China and it threats human health seriously
There are more than 130 million chronic carriers of HBV in China, 30% ~ 50% of which are attributed to maternal-infantile transmission [10]
Some studies have reported on the seroprevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and its related risk factors among the general population [12,13], blood donors [14,15], pregnant women [16,17] and health care workers [18] in the past few years, few studies have focused on women of childbearing age (15 ~ 49 years)
Summary
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is highly endemic in China and it threats human health seriously. The hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) prevalence among women of childbearing age plays an important role in mother to child transmission of HBV, as 30% ~50% of chronic carriers can be attributed to maternal-infantile transmission. There are few studies which have reported on the prevalence of HBsAg among women of childbearing age in China. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of HBsAg and its associated risk factors among rural women of childbearing age in Hainan, which is the highest hepatitis B virus endemic province in China. The prevalence of HBsAg among women of childbearing age plays a very important role in the transmission and prevalence of HBV. Some studies have reported on the seroprevalence of HBsAg and its related risk factors among the general population [12,13], blood donors [14,15], pregnant women [16,17] and health care workers [18] in the past few years, few studies have focused on women of childbearing age (15 ~ 49 years)
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