It has been estimated that between
140,000 to 400,000 new cases of acute hepatitis B occur annually in the Americas.
Two thirds of them are believed to occur in South America, primarily in areas
within the Amazon Basin.
Recommendations:
- Routine vaccination of all children
living in the Amazon Basin is recommended as well as in other areas, if any,
with high endemicity (HbsAg prevalence equal or greater than 7%).
- Routine vaccination is also recommended
for those at high risk of infection, such as Elath care workers and hospital
staff.
- Because HBV infection is largely
asymptomatic among young children, disease surveillance has a limited role in
monitoring the hepatitis B vaccination program. Instead, the vaccination
program must be monitored through mechanism of process indicators (e.g.,
proportion of children or workers vaccinated) and through studies of
asymptomatic hepatitis B virus infection (i.e. serologic studies).
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