Peer-reviewed article
Trends in clinical intervention practice for preventing mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus in Guangdong Province, 2021-2023.
Shuang Gao, Tiancheng Xie, Min Cai, Mengyang Su, Tianshuo Zhao et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study analyzes trends in preventing mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus in Guangdong Province, China, between 2021 and 2023. Over 283,000 hepatitis B surface antigen-positive pregnant women and their newborns were included. The research found declining rates of hepatitis B e antigen positivity among pregnant women, increasing use of antiviral therapy, and improved coverage of timely hepatitis B vaccination and immunoglobulin administration to newborns.
Key points
- HBeAg positivity rate among HBsAg-positive pregnant women was 26.1% overall, with a declining trend from 2021 to 2023
- Antiviral treatment uptake in HBeAg-positive pregnant women rose from 23.8% in 2021 to 51.8% in 2023
- Coverage of both hepatitis B birth dose vaccine and hepatitis B immunoglobulin within 12 hours of birth exceeded 97% in 2023
- Public health interventions successfully reduced mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B in the province
- Additional efforts needed particularly for young HBeAg-positive pregnant women
Limitations
The document describes trends in intervention coverage and outcomes but does not establish causal relationships between specific interventions and transmission reduction rates. It does not report actual mother-to-child transmission rates or long-term child health outcomes.
Abstract
Guangdong Province in China is endemic for hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection with a high prevalence of chronic HBV infection in pregnant women. Measures have been taken to reduce mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HBV. This study aims to analyze the trends in these preventive measures in hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive pregnant women from 2021 to 2023. Data were obtained from the case report forms of HBsAg-positive pregnant women and their newborns that were completed and reported in Guangdong Province through the Information System of the National Integrated Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV, syphilis and hepatitis B Programme from January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2023. The Cochran-Armitage test was employed to analyze trends in maternal hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) positivity rates across different age groups of pregnant women, antiviral treatment rates in the total and HBeAg-positive populations, and the coverage of timely birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine (HepB-BD) and hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG) among infants born to the total and HBeAg-positive pregnant women from 2021 to 2023. A total of 283,959 HBsAg-positive pregnant women and their newborns were included in the study. The HBeAg positivity rate among the HBsAg-positive pregnant women was 26.1%. The prevalence of HBeAg positivity among HBsAg-positive pregnant women in Guangdong Province experienced a declining trend from 2021 to 2023. Over the same period, the uptake of antiviral treatment increased in both the overall population and the HBeAg-positive subgroup, with the proportion of HBeAg-positive pregnant women receiving antiviral therapy rising from 23.8% in 2021 to 51.8% in 2023. The proportion of HBV-exposed newborns receiving both HepB-BD and HBIG within 12 hours of birth also increased steadily, with coverage exceeding 97% in 2023. This study highlights significant progress in reducing MTCT of hepatitis B in Guangdong Province from 2021 to 2023. HBeAg positivity among HBsAg-positive pregnant women declined, while both the uptake of antiviral therapy and the timely administration of HepB-BD and HBIG to HBV-exposed infants improved markedly. These findings underscore the important role of public health interventions while emphasizing the need for sustained efforts, particularly for young HBeAg-positive pregnant women.