Universal hepatitis B vaccination and the decreased mortality from fulminant hepatitis in infants in Taiwan

September 23, 2001

J Pediatr 2001 Sep;139(3):349-352

Universal hepatitis B vaccination and the decreased mortality from fulminant

hepatitis in infants in Taiwan.

Kao JH, Hsu HM, Shau WY, Chang MH, Chen DS.

Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, and

Hepatitis Research Center, National Taiwan University College of Medicine

and National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; and Center for

Disease Control, Department of Health, Executive Yuan, Taipei, Taiwan.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the annual mortality rate associated with fulminant

hepatitis in infants before and after the mass immunization program that was

launched in Taiwan in July 1984.Study design: From the National Mortality

Registry System, the data on the mortality from fulminant hepatitis in

infants from 1975 to 1998 were retrieved. Poisson regression analysis was

used to assess the difference in average mortality from fulminant hepatitis

in infants before (1975-1984) and after (1985-1998) the implementation of

the mass hepatitis B vaccination program. RESULTS: The ratio of yearly

mortality from 1975 to 1998 was 1.10 (P <.001), representing a progressive

decrease in the number of the cases. The average mortality associated with

fulminant hepatitis in infants from 1975 to 1984 and from 1985 to 1998 was

5.36 and 1.71 per 100,000 infants, respectively. The ratio of the average

mortality in the period from 1985 to 1998 to that in the period from 1975 to

1984 was 0.32 (P <.001). CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that since the

institution of a program of mass hepatitis B vaccination in Taiwan, the

mortality associated with fulminant hepatitis in infants has declined

significantly.

PMID: 11562612 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

September 23, 2001