Hepatitis B virus immunity prior to and after administration of a ‘booster’ dose of vaccine among health-care students at a South African university

• Published in: Vaccine: X 2023-08, Vol.14, p.100284-100284, Article 100284
• Main Authors: Makan, Nisha, Song, Ernest, Kinge, Constance Wose, Kramvis, Anna
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Health-care students; Hepatitis B virus; HepB; Immunity; Regular paper; Vaccination
• ISSN: 2590-1362; 2590-1362
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jvacx.2023.100284

•Health-care students (HCS) are at-risk of occupational exposure to hepatitis B.•Following a ‘booster’ hepatitis B vaccine, ∼7% of participants remained non-immune.•Pre-vaccination immunity contributed significantly to post-vaccination response.•Appropriate management of susceptible individuals is currently not being pursued.•Immunity testing following vaccination is highly recommended for health-care students. Health-care students (HCSs) are at risk of occupational exposure to hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection despite an effective hepatitis B vaccine (HepB) being available. The majority of current HCSs are born after HepB was introduced into the South African Expanded Programme on Immunisation in 1995. Thus, it is assumed that having received HepB in infancy, a single ‘booster’ dose would suffice. This study aimed to investigate HBV immunity prior to and after administration of a HepB ‘booster’ dose. Hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) levels were determined in first year HCSs at the University of the Witwatersrand, before and after receiving the ‘booster’. Participant demographics and HepB history were captured using a structured questionnaire. Before receiving the ‘booster’, 56% (101/180) had anti-HBs