[Evaluation of serum hepatitis B antibody level in vaccinated children after 14 years in Kashan, Iran]

ABSTRACT

Hepatitis B vaccination has been conducted in neonates in the routine vaccination in Iran since 1993. This study was carried out to evaluate the serum hepatitis B antibody level in vaccinated children after 14 years in Kashan, Iran. This prospetive cohort study was conducted on 200 fourteen-year-old children which were selected via a simple random sampling method in Kashan, Iran drung 2008-09. This subjects were have been vaccined according to the govermental guildline at 0, 2 and 6 months old. Two ml blood specimens were obtained from children and serum hepatitis B surface antibody [anti-HBs] and hepatitis B core antibody [anti-HBc] were determined by ELISA method. Immunity was interpreted as anti-HBs>/= 10 IU/L. Data were analyzed using SPSS-13, Chi-Square and Fisher's exat tests. 92% girls and 95% boys, totally 187[93.5%] children had serum anti-HBs>/= 10 IU/L. Anti-HBc was positive in 3 [3%] girls and 5[5%] boys, totally 8[4%] which all of them had serum anti-HBSImmunity was detected in 11 of 18 [61.1%] children with birth weight<2.5 kg and in 176 of 182 [96.7%] children with birth weight>/= 2.5 kg [P<0.05]. The immunity following the complete series [0, 2, 6 months old] of hepatitis B vaccination remained detectable after 14 years