OBJECTIVES Adverse events and positive re-challenge of symptoms reported in the scientific literature and to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) following hepatitis B vaccination (HBV) were examined. METHODS The VAERS and PubMed (1966-2003) were searched for autoimmune conditions including arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, myelitis, optic neuritis, multiple sclerosis (MS), Guill...

More than 30 years after the discovery of human hepatitis B virus (HBV) this virus remains to be one of the major global health problems. In infected adolescents or adults, 5%-10% will lead to a chronic carrier state, whereas in infected neonates up to 90% develop chronicity. It is estimated that about 370 million people are chronic carriers of HBV worldwide. In many regions of the world, chron...

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and the incidence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) among haemodialysis (HD) subjects and to evaluate whether testing for serological markers at the time of admission is suitable for HBV screening in this population. One hundred twenty-three patients belonging to two HD centres from São Paulo, Brazil, were tested prospectively. HBV DNA was detected...

This commentary describes the need for a birth dose monovalent hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine and an effective programme for the prevention of mother-to-child-transmission (MTCT) of HBV in Africa. Current World Health Organization guidelines recommend routine maternal screening for HBV followed by treatment of highly infectious HBV-infected mothers, and HBV birth dose vaccination and the admin...

In this Editorial by Yuanyong Xu and colleagues (BMJ 2013;347:f4503, doi:10.1136/bmj.f4503), the abbreviationHPV, rather than HBV, was mistakenly used in two instances. The first line of the second paragraph should have read: “The Chinese government introduced infant vaccination with HBV vaccine in 1992 . . .” and the first line of the sixth paragraph should have read: “The antiviral agent lami...

BACKGROUND Since 2005, anti-hepatitis B virus (anti-HBV) vaccine is part of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) for infants born in Cameroon, with 99% anti-HBV coverage. In a context of generalized HIV epidemiology, we assessed paediatric anti-HBV vaccine response according to HIV status, feeding option and age in a tropical context. METHODOLOGY Prospective, observational and cross-sec...

BACKGROUND We have constructed and clinically evaluated a hypoallergenic vaccine for grass pollen allergy, BM32, which is based on fusion proteins consisting of peptides from the IgE binding sites of the major grass pollen allergens fused to preS (preS1+preS2), a domain of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) large envelope protein which mediates the viral attachment and entry. Aim of this study was the...

BACKGROUND AND AIM Current baseline data regarding the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections and the immune status in hyperendemic areas is necessary in evaluating the effectiveness of ongoing HBV prevention and control programs in northwest China. This study aims to determine the prevalence of chronic HBV infections, past exposure rates, and immune response profiles in Wuwei City, n...

OBJECTIVE In thalassemic children, HBV infection is common, thus immunization against HBV will reduce and prevent the rate of infection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of HBV immunization and the prevalence of HBV infection in beta-thalassemic children in Tehran. METHODS To assess the efficacy of immunization and determine the immune response of children with beta-thalasse...

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and its sequelae, one of the major diseases of mankind, is now a disease preventable by vaccine. During the last few years, the price of these vaccines has fallen to the point where widespread use in infant immunisation programmes is feasible. This paper reports the great progress that has been made in the control of HBV infection and describes the targets that...