Abstract
Prior results investigating a correlation between obesity and hepatitis A virus (HAV) vaccine response have been inconclusive, with limited data involving live attenuated HAV vaccines. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of overweight and obesity on the response to live attenuated HAV vaccine in children and young adults. This prospective cohort study was conducted in Thailand with subjects ranging in age from seven to twenty-five years. The subjects were administered 0.5 mL of MEVAC™-A and tested for anti-HAV antibodies before and at 8–9 weeks after vaccination. Baseline seronegative subjects (anti-HAV antibodies < 20 mIU/mL) were divided into non-obese (underweight/normal weight) and obese (overweight/obesity/severe obesity) groups. A total of 212 (117 non-obese and 95 obese) subjects completed the study (mean age (SD) = 13.95 (3.90) years). The seroprotection rates were 100%. Postvaccination geometric mean titers (95% CI) were 429.51 (401.97, 458.94) and 467.45 (424.47, 514.79) mIU/mL in the non-obese and obese groups, respectively. Females (p = 0.013) and subjects with truncal obesity (p = 0.002) had significantly higher titers than other participants. Live attenuated HAV vaccine is safe and has comparably high immunogenicity in both underweight/normal weight and overweight/obese persons.
Highlights
Childhood obesity is one of the most serious worldwide health concerns in the twentyfirst century and its prevalence has increased at an alarming rate
In research involving hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine, several studies showed that obesity was a risk factor for vaccine nonresponsiveness [7,8,9]
The remaining 212 subjects were included in the immunogenicity analysis
Summary
Childhood obesity is one of the most serious worldwide health concerns in the twentyfirst century and its prevalence has increased at an alarming rate. Consumption Survey examined the prevalence of overweight and obesity in a nationally representative sample of Thai children and adults [2]. Among children and adolescents aged three to eighteen years, the prevalence of overweight and obesity were 9.1% and 6.5%, respectively. Using the World Health Organization (WHO) standard for Asian populations, the combined prevalence of overweight and obesity in Thai adults aged nineteen years and over was 23.9%. Overweight and obese children are likely to stay obese into adulthood They are more likely to develop noncommunicable diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease at a younger age. Results in studies involving killed hepatitis A virus (HAV) vaccine were inconclusive. There is no data focused on live HAV vaccines
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