São Paulo Medical Journal ()

Epidemiology of acute hepatitis B in a university hospital in São Paulo, Brazil: retrospective study of two five-year periods

  • Maria Lúcia Gomes Ferraz,
  • Alessandra Yoradjian,
  • Andrea Barbieri,
  • Virginia Figueiredo,
  • Edmundo Lopes Neto,
  • Cibele Nascimento Cruz,
  • Antonio Eduardo Silva

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1590/S1516-31801998000300002
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 116, no. 3
pp. 1695 – 1699

Abstract

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CONTEXT: HBV infection is endemic in Brazil and acute HBV infection is still a common disease. OBJECTIVE: To analyze incidence, risk factors and evolution of acute HBV infection. SETTING: University Hospital. PATIENTS: 357 patients with acute HBV infection, comparing two periods: 1985-1989 vs. 1990-1994. RESULTS: The overall incidence declined from 50 new cases/year in 1985-89 (30% of all cases) to 25 new cases/year in 1990-94 (8% of all cases). Transmission among male homosexuals (3.9% of cases in 85-89) declined to 1.3% in 90-94 (p>0.05). Amongst health care workers (HCW) it declined from 8.2% to 2.0% (p=0.02). Conversely, heterosexual transmission increased from 4.8% to 10.1% (p=0.06). Chronification of HBV infection following the acute episode was observed in 1.7%. Fulminant hepatic failure was seen in 3.4%. However, 27.2% of patients were lost to follow-up before normalization of the biochemical tests. CONCLUSIONS: The different patterns of risk factors observed is probably related to measures for preventing AIDS and to HCW vaccination programs. Chronification following acute episodes was not a common event.

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