Journal article
Markers of hepatitis B virus infection and immunity in Victoria, Australia, 1995 to 2005
Benjamin Cowie, Theo Karapanagiotidis, Adam Enriquez, Heath Kelly
AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH | PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOC AUSTRALIA INC | Published : 2010
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Estimating the prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in generally low-prevalence populations containing communities with a higher disease burden is difficult. This study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of serological markers of infection with, and immunity to, HBV in the Victorian population and to analyse trends in these estimates over time. METHODS: A serological survey of 3,212 samples of convenience collected in the years 1995, 2000 and 2005 was conducted using a selection procedure designed to reduce selection bias. All samples were tested for hepatitis B surface and core antibodies; all core antibody positive samples (indicating previous infection)..
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Funding Acknowledgements
BCC was supported by postgraduate scholarships from the Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Infectious Diseases and the National Health and Medical Research Council. Abbott Diagnostics supported this research by providing the EIA kits at a discounted price. The Division of Epidemiology, VIDRL purchased the kits and provided other resources used in this research. The Serology Laboratory, VIDRL provided laboratory facilities and assisted with testing. All authors declare they have no conflict of interest.