Prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection and associated risk factors among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in Mulago Hospital, Uganda: a cross-sectional study.

AIM

To determine the prevalence and factors associated with hepatitis B virus infection among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in Mulago Hospital.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional observational study.

SETTING

Mulago National Referral Hospital, Uganda, antenatal clinic.

PARTICIPANTS

We randomly selected 340 pregnant women attending their first antenatal visit at Mulago Hospital antenatal clinic.

PRIMARY OUTCOME

Hepatitis B surface antigen positivity.

RESULTS

We recruited 340 participants, with a mean age of 27±5.7 years, and a median gravidity of 3. The prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection among pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic in Mulago Hospital, in our study, was 2.9% (95% CI 1.58% to 5.40%, n=10). Factors positively associated with hepatitis B virus infection were: marital status (adjusted OR (aOR)=11.37, p=0.002), having a hepatitis B positive family member (aOR=49.52, p<0.001) and having had a blood or body fluid splash to mucous membranes from a hepatitis B positive patient (aOR=61.69, p=0.015). Other factors such as age, socioeconomic status, number of sexual partners, HIV serostatus, piercing of ears and history of blood transfusion were not significantly associated with hepatitis B virus infection in this study.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in Mulago Hospital was of intermediate endemicity. We found that marital status, having a hepatitis B positive family member at home and having had a blood or body fluid splash to mucous membranes from a hepatitis B positive patient were independently associated with hepatitis B infection. Factors such as age, HIV status, history of blood transfusion, piercing of ears and social status were not associated with hepatitis B status in this study.