Bundesgesundheitsblatt - Gesundheitsforschung - Gesundheitsschutz
Volume 59, Issue 5, 2016, Pages 578-583

Current seroprevalence, vaccination and predictive value of liver enzymes for hepatitis B among refugees in Germany [Aktuelle Seroprävalenz, Impfstatus und prädiktiver Wert der Leberenzyme für Hepatitis B bei Flüchtlingen in Deutschland] (Article)

Hampel A. , Solbach P. , Cornberg M. , Schmidt R.E. , Behrens G.M.N. , Jablonka A.*
  • a Klinik für Anästhesie, Notfallmedizin, Operative Intensivmedizin und Schmerztherapie, Klinikum Wolfsburg, Wolfsburg, Germany
  • b Klinik für Gastroenterologie, Hepatologie, Endokrinologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Hannover, Germany, Standort Hannover-Braunschweig, Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF), Braunschweig, Germany
  • c Klinik für Gastroenterologie, Hepatologie, Endokrinologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Hannover, Germany, Standort Hannover-Braunschweig, Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF), Braunschweig, Germany
  • d Klinik für Immunologie und Rheumatologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, Hannover, 30625, Germany, Standort Hannover-Braunschweig, Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF), Braunschweig, Germany
  • e Klinik für Immunologie und Rheumatologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, Hannover, 30625, Germany, Standort Hannover-Braunschweig, Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF), Braunschweig, Germany
  • f Klinik für Immunologie und Rheumatologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, Hannover, 30625, Germany, Standort Hannover-Braunschweig, Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF), Braunschweig, Germany

Abstract

Background: Currently only vague estimates exist for the seroprevalence and vaccination status for viral hepatitis B (HBV) in refugees arriving in Germany during the current refugee crisis. Objectives: To assess the prevalence of hepatitis B in refugees arriving in northern Germany in 2015. Methods: In a cross-sectional study in 793 patients from all age groups tests for serological markers of hepatitis Bvirus infection (HBsAg, anti-HBc) and liver enzymes (ALT, AST, bilirubin, γGT, alkaline phosphatase) were performed inAugust 2015 at six reception centers in northern Germany. In 258 patients anti-HBs antibodies were assessed additionally. Results: Of the tested refugees, 76.7 % were male, the median age was 28.8 ± 11.4 years, and 7.8 % were children under the age of 18. The overall prevalence of HBsAg and total anti-HBc was 2.3 % and 14.0 % respectively (2.5 % and 14.5 % in men; 1.2 % and 13.5 % in women). Prevalence was highest in 35 to 49-year-old patients for HBsAg (3.1 %) and for refugees over 50 years for anti-HBc (38 %). No immunity to Hepatitis B was found in 62 %, 18.6 % had been vaccinated against Hepatitis B, while 50 % of children aged up to 15 years (n = 12) had been vaccinated. Positive predictive values of elevated AST and ALT for detection of HBsAg was 0 and 0.016, respectively. Only two patients with a positive HBsAg had elevated transaminases. Conclusions: This study showed a high prevalence of HBsAg in a German refugee sample in comparison to the general German population. Liver enzymes are not an appropriate tool for screening for hepatitis B virus infection. © 2016, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Author Keywords

Vaccination Liver enzymes Refugees Asylum seeker Hepatitis B

Index Keywords

Germany refugee mass screening Clinical Enzyme Tests Transaminases sex ratio human Refugees middle aged statistics and numerical data Biomarkers Aged prognosis procedures aminotransferase enzyme assay Young Adult liver function test Humans Adolescent Infant, Newborn male preschool child Aged, 80 and over Infant very elderly Liver Function Tests risk factor reproducibility Risk Factors Reproducibility of Results Child, Preschool newborn prevalence sensitivity and specificity blood female Hepatitis B Vaccines adult biological marker Sex Distribution utilization hepatitis B vaccine age distribution vaccination hepatitis B Seroepidemiologic Studies Child
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84964325366&doi=10.1007%2fs00103-016-2333-8&partnerID=40&md5=1b62c2c2a9e35852ff0852a1b90c8098
DOI: 10.1007/s00103-016-2333-8
ISSN: 14369990
Cited by: 14
Original Language: German