Hepatitis B vaccination of preterm infants and risk of bronchopulmonary dysplasia: a cohort study, Australia

Abstract

Objective To determine whether hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination of extremely preterm infants (defined in our study as < 29 weeks gestation) within 24 hours of birth (birth-dose) increases the risk of developing bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Methods Using data from Australia, we conducted a population data linkage study using the Victorian Vaccine Safety Health Link. This platform links state-wide immunization and health outcomes from the Victorian Perinatal Data Collection and the Victorian Admitted Episodes Dataset. Our retrospective cohort study included all extremely preterm infants born alive during 2017–2020 (excluding data outliers). We investigated the relationship between birth-dose..