Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) occurs worldwide with more than 2 billion people being infected with HBV at some time in their lives. Transmission of HBV from carrier mothers to babies can occur during perinatal period and is important factor in determining the prevalence of infection in highly endemic areas. AIM: To assess the prevalence of hepatitis B infection, among otherwise healthy pregnant females. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study analysed records of antenatal care registry from 1(st) April 2013 to 30(th) March 2014 at our institution. Details of a total of 3686 pregnant women subjected to screening of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) was recorded into a preset proforma. Data thus obtained has been analysed using SPSS version 13 and presented. RESULTS: Seroprevalence of HBsAg positive antenatal females was 1.11%. The mean age of HBsAg positive pregnant women was 24.98±4.16 years. Thirty one (75.61%) subjects hailed form a rural area. 4 (09.75%) and 3 (07.31%) subjects had HBV-HCV co-infection and HBV-HIV co-infection respectively. Mean parity of women with HBV infection was 1.83±0.87. Most common age group with HBV infection was 25-30 years. CONCLUSION: Around 130 countries in the world are currently covered by routine hepatitis B immunization. High prevalence of seropositivity of HBsAg among antenatal female calls for routine vaccination against HBV infection. Universal free screening for HBV infection needs to be offered to all antenatal females on an opt-out basis to prevent the next generation from being grappled by chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma.