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Hepatitis B elimination in children of Slovenian origin born in Slovenia after the introduction of preventive strategies: The results of a national study

Nina Grasselli Kmet
Nina Grasselli Kmet
, 
Mario Poljak
Mario Poljak
, 
Breda Zakotnik
Breda Zakotnik
 and 
Mojca Matičič
Mojca Matičič
   | Mar 21, 2022
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Article Category: Original scientific article
Published Online: Mar 21, 2022
Page range: 109 - 114
Received: Mar 22, 2021
Accepted: Feb 18, 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjph-2022-0015
Keywords
© 2022 National Institute of Public Health, Slovenia, published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Figure 1

The annual number of newly registered hepatitis B virus chronically infected children in the studied period 1997–2010 (N=52).
The annual number of newly registered hepatitis B virus chronically infected children in the studied period 1997–2010 (N=52).

Figure 2

The annual number of newly registered hepatitis B virus chronically infected persons in the studied period 1997–2010 (N=1.729).
The annual number of newly registered hepatitis B virus chronically infected persons in the studied period 1997–2010 (N=1.729).

Demographic, epidemiological, clinical and virological characteristics of included children regarding presence/absence of hepatitis B virus e antigen (N=40).

Domain HBeAg-negative n (%) HBeAg-negative n (%) p- value
Gender (N=40) 23 (57.5) 17 (42.5)
Female 9 (39.1) 8 (47.1) 0.616a
Male 14 (60.9) 9 (52.9)
Median age (range) (years) (N=40) 14 (0-18) 17 (0-18) 0.334c
Risk factors (N=28) 17 (60.7) 11 (39.3)
Unknown 4 (23.5) 3 (27.3) 0.824b
Presence of HBV infection within the family 12 (70.6) 6 (54.5) 0.389b
Blood/blood products transfusion 1 (5.9) 0 (0) 0.312b
High-risk sexual behavior 0 (0) 1 (9.1) 0.165b
Surgical procedure in the past 0 (0) 1 (9.1) 0.165b
ALT (μkat/L)(N=22)
≤ 0.56 10 (66.7) 2 (28.6)
> 0.56 5 (33.3) 5 (71.4) 0.092b
Viral load (IU/ml) (N=20)
< 2,000 8 (66.7) 0 (0) 0.001b
2,000–20,000 0 (0) 0 (0)
> 20,000 4 (33.3) 8 (100)

Number of children of Slovenian origin by year of birth (N=47).

YEAR OF BIRTH NUMBER OF CHILDREN
1979 1
1980 2
1981 3
1982 4
1983 5
1984 3
1985 3
1986 2
1987 4
1988 2
1989 2
1990 6
1991 0
1992 0
1993 0
1994 2
1995 0
1996 5
1997 0
1998 1
1999 0
2000 0
2001 0
2002 0
2003 1
2004 1
2005 0
2006 0
2007 0
2008 0
2009 0
2010 0
Sum 47

Demographic, epidemiological, clinical and virological characteristics of included children (N=52).

%
Gender (N=52)
Female 22 (42.3)
Male 30 (57.7)
Mean age (SD; range) (years) (N=52) 13.3 (5.5; 0-18)
Risk factors (N=35)
Unknown 8 (22.9)
Presence of HBV infection within the family 24 (68.8)
Blood/blood products transfusion 1 (2.9)
High-risk sexual behavior 1 (2.9)
Surgical procedure in the past 1 (2.9)
ALT (N=29) (μkat/L)
≤ 0.56 14 (48.3)
> 0.56 15 (51.7)
HBeAg (N=40)
Negative 23 (57.5)
Positive 17 (42.5)
Viral load (IU/ml) (N=24)
< 2,000 9 (37.5)
2,000–20,000 0 (0)
> 20,000 15 (62.5)
eISSN:
1854-2476
Language:
English
Publication timeframe:
4 times per year
Journal Subjects:
Medicine, Clinical Medicine, Hygiene and Environmental Medicine
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