Hepatitis B Surface Antigenaemia and Some Associated Risk Factors Among Patients Attending Hospital in Danja Local Government Area of Katsina State, Nigeria

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a DNA virus which belongs to the family Hepadnaviridae. Infection with hepatitis B virus may be acute or chronic and can result in complications including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In Nigeria, community misconceptions, inadequate attention or funding by the government have led to a high prevalence of the disease. The study was carried out to assess the prevalence and some risk factors associated with hepatitis B virus in Danja Local Government Area of Katsina State. Blood samples were collected from 688 patients attending Comprehensive Health Centre in Danja Local Government Area of Katsina State. Screening of samples was done using HBsAg test strip which is a rapid chromatographic immune assay (EGENS Reagent Technology, USA). A structured questionnaire was administered to determine some of the factors that influenced the prevalence of infection. The overall prevalence of infection was 15% (103/688). Males were more infected (19.6%) than females (7.8%) (P<0.05). Patients between the 0-12 years age group had the highest prevalence compared to other age groups. Factors such as marital status, blood transfusion, sharing of barbing and nail cutting items, previous infection with sexually transmitted diseases and number of persons living in a room were found to be significantly associated with hepatitis B virus (P< 0.05). Results from this study shows that hepatitis B virus infection is prevalent in the study area. Health education as well as vaccination of people should be carried out to prevent the spread of the infection