Tropical Doctor > Volume 37, Number 4 > Pp. 245-247

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Roushan, M. R. H. Articles by Velayati, A. A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Social Bookmarking                      What's this?

Short Reports

Possible transmission of hepatitis B virus between spouses and their children in Babol, Northern Iran

Mohammad Reza Hasanjani Roushan MD  ¹   Minoo Mohraz MD  ²   Ali Akbar Velayati MD  ²

¹ Department of Infectious Diseases, Yahyanejad Hospital, Babol Medical University, Babol 4717641367;; ² Iranian Society for Support of Patients with Infectious Diseases (ISSPID), Tehran, Iran

Correspondence to: Mohammad Reza Hasanjani Roushan hagar2q{at}yahoo.ca

To determine the possible routes of transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection between spouses and their children in Babol, Northern Iran, the spouses of 54 infected husbands and 49 wives without any evidence of HBV infection in their family members were evaluated from March 1998 to April 2005. All of these cases were hepatitis B surface antigen and anti-hepatitis B 'e' antigen positive. Mean duration of marriage for husbands was 14.4±6.49 and for wives12.46±6.24 years. Past HBV infection was found in 46.3% wives of infected husbands and in 65.3% husbands of infected wives (P = 0.074). HBV markers were seen in 32.5% children of infected fathers and 64.5% children of infected mothers (P = 0.0001). HBV carrier rates in boys and girls of infected mothers were significantly higher than in those of infected fathers (P = 0.002 and P = 0.0001, respectively). The results show that transmission of HBV between spouses and their children were the main routes of transmission of HBV in our region.

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?