Peer-reviewed article
Hepatitis B virus infection and associated risk factors among mothers attending public health facilities in Bahir Dar, Northwest Ethiopia.
Mekuanint Geta, Endalew Yizengaw, Kefale Ejigu, Asrat Hailu, Yimtubezinash Woldeamanuel ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study screened 325 mothers in Ethiopia for hepatitis B virus infection and found a 3.4% prevalence rate. The research identified three significant risk factors: a history of sexually transmitted diseases, contact with family members who have chronic hepatitis B, and female circumcision. The findings suggest hepatitis B remains a public health concern for mothers in the study area, with implications for preventing transmission to newborns.
Key points
- Overall hepatitis B virus seroprevalence among mothers was 3.4% (95% CI: 1.0-5.0)
- History of sexually transmitted diseases was associated with 7.6 times higher odds of HBV infection
- Contact with chronic hepatitis B-infected family members was associated with 20.86 times higher odds of infection
- Female circumcision was associated with 13.76 times higher odds of HBV infection
- The study calls for enhanced public health strategies to reduce HBV infection in mothers
Limitations
This is a cross-sectional study, so it can only identify associations, not causation or temporal relationships between risk factors and infection. The study was limited to mothers attending public health facilities in one city, so findings may not generalise to other settings or rural populations.
Abstract
Globally, the burden of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a serious health problem for women that could be transmitted to their newborn infants. Screening and treating at an early stage help prevent the spread of this infection and its complications. Therefore, the study aimed to assess the seroprevalence and associated risk factors of HBV infection among mothers attending public health facilities in Bahir Dar, Northwest Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a total of 325 mothers attending Bahir Dar city public health facilities from December 2023 to June 2024. Data on sociodemographic characteristics and possible risk factors were collected using a structured questionnaire, and serum samples were screened for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) using sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 23 software. Logistic regression was used to check the association between variables with an odds ratio (OR) at 95% confidence intervals (CI). P-value ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The overall seroprevalence of HBV infection was 3.4% (95% CI; 1.0-5.0). The history of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) (AOR = 7.60; 95% CI: 1.84-31.34, p = 0.005), history of contact with chronic hepatitis B virus-infected (CHB) family members (AOR = 20.86; 95% CI: 2.48-175.03, p = 0.005), and female circumcision (AOR = 13.76; 95% CI: 1.63-116.80, p = 0.016) were significantly associated risk factors with HBV infection. Generally, an intermediate seroprevalence of HBV infection was reported in this study. This showed that HBV infection is still a critical public health concern among mothers in the study area. History of contact with CHB family members, history of STDs, and female circumcision were significantly associated risk factors with HBV infection. These findings call for enhanced public health strategies to effectively reduce HBV infection in mothers.