Prevalence of hepatitis A antibodies in schoolchildren in Catalonia (Spain) after the introduction of universal hepatitis A immunization

✍ Scribed by Àngela Domínguez; Miquel Bruguera; Pere Plans; Josep Costa; Lluís Salleras

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2004
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 66 KB
• Volume: 73
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0146-6615
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.20072

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of hepatitis A antibodies (anti‐HAV) in schoolchildren in Catalonia and to compare it with the rates found in previous studies. Sera from a representative sample of 1,342 children aged between 6 and 15 years, recruited in 2001, were tested for anti‐HAV. The results were related to sociodemographic variables and vaccination history. The overall prevalence of anti‐HAV was 51.4%. The prevalence was 5.5% in non‐vaccinated children, similar to that found in a 1996 study, and 96.6% in vaccinated children. The prevalence of anti‐HAV in non‐vaccinated children increased significantly with age, reaching 11.6% in the 13–15 years age group. The prevalence of anti‐HAV was higher in children born outside Catalonia than in those born in Catalonia (16.1% vs. 5.0%, P = 0.02). The expected continuation in the decline in the prevalence of anti‐HAV in non‐vaccinated schoolchildren, observed in Catalonia since 1986, was not found in 2001. The rate of anti‐HAV in 2001 was slightly higher than in 1996, although the difference was not statistically significant (5.5 and 3.5%, respectively). This could be explained by the increased number of recent immigrant children born outside Catalonia, mainly in countries where hepatitis A is highly endemic. J. Med. Virol. 73:172–176, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.