Recent Seroprevalence of Anti-hepatitis A IgG in the Korean Population: a Large, Population-based Study

ABSTRACT

Background@#Because there is limited recent information on this topic, this study investigated the seroprevalence of anti-hepatitis A virus (HAV) immunoglobulin G (IgG) in the South Korean population in 2015–2017. @*Methods@#Anti-HAV IgG seroprevalence data were obtained from the laboratory information system of Green Cross Laboratories, one of the largest referral laboratories in South Korea. @*Results@#During the three-year study period, we obtained test results from 240,840 individuals (124,353 men and 116,487 women) from 1,348 hospitals and local clinics throughout South Korea. The median (range) age of subjects was 38.0 (18.0–97.2) years. The annual seroprevalence of anti-HAV IgG was 53.3%, 53.0%, and 53.1% in 2015, 2016, and 2017, respectively. The median age differed among geographic regions and anti-HAV seroprevalence differed among age groups and geographic regions (P1.0, P<0.05). @*Conclusions@#This study provides basic information about the recent seroprevalence of anti-HAV IgG in the Korean population and contributes to identifying groups at high risk of an HAV epidemic.