Infant and adolescent hepatitis B immunization up to 1999: a global overview

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And why do they have hep b??? Could it be contaminated vaccine needles in

the years previous????

Sheri

http://www.elsevier.com/inca/publications/store/3/0/5/2/1/

Vaccine, Vol. 19 (9-10) (2000) pp. 1026 - 1037

© 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

PII: S0264-410X(00)00239-5

Infant and adolescent hepatitis B immunization up to 1999:

a global overview

E. Vryheid a * rvryheid@..., Mark A. Kane b,

Muller b, C.

Schatz1 c and Shewit Bezabeh d

a P.O. Box 1115, Lemon Grove, CA 91946-1115, USA

b Program for Appropriate Technology in Health, Seattle, WA, USA

c Plexus Health Group, St. Simons Island, GA, USA

d Center for Drug and Radiological Health, Food and Drug Administration,

Washington, DC, USA

This article is dedicated to the memory of Schatz, one of our

co-authors. He devoted many

years to helping people protect themselves from hepatitis B, and died in

an auto accident during a

field trip. We miss his dedication to the cause, and his sense

of humour.

Received 16 December 1999; received in revised form 27 June 2000;

accepted 18 July 2000

Abstract

This article presents a global overview of hepatitis B infant and

adolescent immunization

programmes. The 108 reported universal infant or adolescent immunization

programmes and 87

reported national infant coverage rates fit a pattern, explained by

hepatitis B endemicity, prosperity,

policy emphasis, and immunization programme strength. Most East and

Southeast Asian, Pacific, and

Middle Eastern countries have intermediate to highly endemic hepatitis B.

Most have achieved

65-100% coverage. South and Central Asia and sub-Saharan Africa have

intermediate to high

endemicity, with some countries having hepatitis B immunization programmes.

Some Southern and

Eastern European countries, with intermediate endemicity, have high

coverage. Low endemic

Northern European countries vaccinate higher risk groups; some have

universal infant or adolescent

programmes. Caribbean and Latin American countries have varying endemicity,

and most started

programmes. Low endemic North American countries have universal vaccination

programmes.

Universal immunization strategies have greatly reduced incidence and

prevalence, and are

cost-effective for many countries, but many have difficulties affording

this vaccine. Globally, most

infants are not being immunized against hepatitis B virus infection.

Increasing coverage, and

decreasing the numbers of people diseased and dying from this virus, may

require delivering

heat-stable vaccine beyond cold chains, creative financing to reduce

prices, and multivalent vaccines.

Keywords: Hepatitis B; Vaccination; Immunization; Infants; Adolescents

*Corresponding author. Tel./fax: +1-619-6971467

1Deceased.

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© Copyright 2000, Elsevier Science, All rights reserved.

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