Epidemiology of Chronic Hepatitis B Infection in the Cohort of College Students with Vaccination in Taiwan
Te-Wei Cheng,
Jeng-Fu Yang,
Yi-Yu Chen,
Kuan-Ta Wu,
Meng-Szu Lee,
Hsiang-Ju Kuo,
Tzu-Chun Lin,
Chao-Ling Wang,
Meng-Hsuan Hsieh,
Chia-Yi Lin,
Batbold Batsaikhan,
Chi-Kung Ho,
Chia-Yen Dai
Affiliations
Te-Wei Cheng
School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Jeng-Fu Yang
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Yi-Yu Chen
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Kuan-Ta Wu
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Meng-Szu Lee
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Hsiang-Ju Kuo
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Tzu-Chun Lin
Executive Master of Healthcare Administration, Department of Healthcare Administration and Medical Informatics, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Chao-Ling Wang
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Meng-Hsuan Hsieh
School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Chia-Yi Lin
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Batbold Batsaikhan
Department of Internal Medicine, Institute of Medical Sciences, Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences, Ulaanbaatar 14210, Mongolia
Chi-Kung Ho
Health Management Center, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
Chia-Yen Dai
School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80756, Taiwan
After the mass vaccination project in Taiwan, the prevalence of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection for the college-aged population of 18 to 21 years is uncertain. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of hepatitis B markers in different birth cohorts. A total of 38,075 students in universities in Kaohsiung area undergoing entrance examinations between July 2006 to September 2020 were included. Seroprevalence of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) status and laboratory data were collected. The seropositive rate of HBsAg was less than 1% for students born after 1991. Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), were significantly higher, and body mass index (BMI) was significantly lower in HBV carriers compared to those who were not carriers (all p < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression showed that age, male, higher BMI, and positive HBsAg were risk factors of abnormal ALT value. A decrease in the positive rate of anti-HBs which was significantly higher in the cohort of plasma-derived vaccines than recombinant vaccines was found. We concluded that there were decreasing trends in seropositive rates of HBsAg and anti-HBs for students of the college-aged population in the Kaohsiung area. The status of HBsAg was a predictive factor of abnormal ALT levels. The period effect on anti-HBs seropositivity for DNA recombinant vaccine somehow existed.
