Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-11-2023
Abstract
Within the United States (US), 2.4 million individuals are living with chronic hepatitis B, but less than 20% are diagnosed. Isolated anti-hepatitis B core (iAHBc) antibodies indicate serology in an individual that is positive for anti-HBc antibodies, while negative for surface antigen (HBsAg) and surface antibodies (anti-HBs). A result of iAHBc could indicate a chronic occult bloodstream infection, necessitating further testing. This study assesses the prevalence and risk factors associated with anti-HBc and iAHBc within community high-risk screening in Greater Philadelphia. Participants (n = 177) were screened for HBsAg, anti-HBs, and anti-HBc during community screening events in 2022. Chi-square tables and Firth logistic regression were used to describe the data and to assess the odds of iAHBc. The findings indicate that there was an iAHBc prevalence of 7.3% (n = 13) within our study. The odds of anti-HBc were increased for immigrants from the Western Pacific (4.5%) and Africa (11.9%). Individuals born in Africa had 7.93 greater odds for iAHBc than those born in the Americas, and these odds are multiplied by 1.01 for every 1-year increase in age. Our data show a high burden of iAHBc within high-risk and often hard-to-reach communities. Triple panel screening should be incorporated into all HBV screening programs, in accordance with current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) universal screening recommendations, to ensure a comprehensive picture of the disease burden and reduce the risk of missing people with occult hepatitis B and those at risk for viral reactivation or liver complications.
Recommended Citation
Freeland, Catherine; Sreepathi, Vivek; Hass, Richard; Fenkel, Jonathan; Torgersen, Jessie; Rothstein, Kenneth; Cohen, Chari; and Gish, Robert, "The Importance of Triple Panel Testing for Hepatitis B and the Burden of Isolated Anti-Hepatitis B Core Antibodies Within a Community Sample" (2023). College of Population Health Faculty Papers. Paper 190.
https://jdc.jefferson.edu/healthpolicyfaculty/190
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Language
English
Comments
This article is the author's final published version in Journal of Virus Eradication, December 2023, Volume 9, Issue 4, Article number 100358.
The published version is available at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jve.2023.100358.
Copyright © 2023 The Author(s)