Deinstitutionalized mentally retarded hepatitis-B surface antigen carriers in public school classes: a descriptive study.

Twenty-seven of 33 formerly institutionalized retarded HBsAg carriers exhibited behaviors which might facilitate viral transmission in classrooms where they had been placed with retarded susceptibles. Classroom conditions included lack of handwashing facilities and frequent failure to inform staff of the presence of such carriers in their classes. A serological survey of classroom contacts showed that 91% of never-institutionalized students, 86% of staff, and 18% of formerly-institutionalized students had no antibody to HBsAg. Caution should be taken to protect teachers and students from infection with hepatitis-B in such classrooms.