Changing aetiologic patterns of acute viral hepatitis in Taiwanese children

• Published in: Journal of gastroenterology and hepatology Vol. 4; no. 4; p. 339
• Main Authors: Huang, L M, Chang, M H, Hong, J Y, Lee, C Y, Chen, D S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia 01-08-1989
• Subjects: Adolescent; Child; Child, Preschool; Disease Outbreaks; Female; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens - analysis; Hepatitis B Vaccines; Hepatitis, Viral, Human - epidemiology; Hepatitis, Viral, Human - microbiology; Hepatitis, Viral, Human - transmission; Humans; Infant; Male; Taiwan - epidemiology; Vaccination; Vaccines, Synthetic; Viral Hepatitis Vaccines; Taiwan
• ISSN: 0815-9319
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1440-1746.1989.tb00845.x

During 1981-86, 76 children were diagnosed as having acute viral hepatitis at the Department of Pediatrics, National Taiwan University Hospital, which is a major referral centre for hepatitis in children in northern Taiwan. The majority (64%) of children had acute hepatitis B which had occurred mainly during infancy. Perinatal transmission from a hepatitis B e negative surface antigen (HBsAg) carrier mother or infection through blood transfusion from a donor who had escaped notice by a less sensitive screening test (reverse passive haemagglutination test) for HBsAg were the two important modes of transmission of hepatitis B virus. The number of cases of acute hepatitis B declined after 1984, with the beginning of the nation-wide hepatitis B vaccination programme. Due to an outbreak of hepatitis A in northern Taiwan in 1982, the number of cases of hepatitis A peaked that year. Subsequently, cases of acute hepatitis A decreased remarkably. Better socio-economic conditions and improved hygiene might have contributed to the marked decrease of viral hepatitis A. The frequency of non-A, non-B hepatitis remained stable during the study period. It is possible to conclude that the aetiologic pattern of acute hepatitis in Taiwanese children changed during the past 6 years: clinical cases of hepatitis A and B decreased, probably because of more effective control of hepatitis A and B virus infections, whereas the control of non-A, non-B virus apparently requires further efforts.