15/09/2025
Know your Hepatitis B status now, knowledge is prevention ✊🏾
Hepatitis B is a significant public health issue in Africa, with the region carrying a disproportionately high burden of the disease.
Prevalence and Incidence
High Burden: The WHO African Region has the highest prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection globally. In 2022, an estimated 64.8 million people in the region were chronically infected
High Endemicity: All countries in the WHO African Region are considered to have an intermediate (2%–7%) or high (≥ 8%) population prevalence of chronic HBV infection.
New Infections: In 2019, there were an estimated 990,000 new HBV infections in the African Region
Impact on Children: A particularly worrying statistic is that two-thirds of the children infected with HBV globally are born in Africa. The region accounts for an estimated 4.5 million children under the age of 5 years who are infected. This is a major concern because infection in early childhood has a high risk of becoming a chronic, lifelong condition (30-50% risk for early childhood acquisition, and 90% risk for perinatal infection)
Modes of Transmission
Mother-to-Child: While perinatal transmission (from mother to child during birth) occurs, the predominant form of transmission in sub-Saharan Africa is "horizontal" transmission among infants and young children. This means the virus spreads from one child to another, often within a household, particularly between the ages of 6 months and 5-6 years.
Household Spread: Studies have shown a strong link between HBV prevalence and behaviors common within households, such as sharing personal items like bath towels, dental cleaning materials, or even partially eaten food.
Other Routes: Like in other parts of the world, HBV can also be transmitted through unprotected sexual contact, unsafe medical injections, contact with infected blood, and use of contaminated sharp instruments for things like tattooing or traditional scarification.
To be continued............
