Hepatitis B Vaccination Coverage, HBS-Ab Level and its Related Factors among Dentistry and Medical Students

Abstract

Background: In Iran, hepatitis B vaccination has been routinely performed for infants since 1993. This vaccination has also been suggested for individuals at risk. Recently, with the birth of children in 1993 and later to the age of entry to the university, assuming they were vaccinated against hepatitis B at birth, the issue of tracking the immunity of these students has been obscured or neglected. Moreover, the entry of some individuals born before 1993 to the university who have not been immunized against this disease in childhood, has made this issue more complicated. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate Hepatitis B Vaccination Coverage, HBS-Ab level and its related factors among dentistry and medical students. Methods: This study was a cross-sectional study performed through providing a checklist and serological tests. After obtaining written consent from the students, the information of 300 students were entered into SPSS software, version 16.0, and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used and P<0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Of the 300 students, 55%, 28.7%, and 16.3% had weak, medium, and good HBS-Ab titer with rates of less than 10, 10 to 100, and more than 100, respectively, moreover, the mean HBS-Ab titer was significantly different between different immune groups (Weak, Medium, and Good) (P = 0.000) (Write P<0.001 instead of P = 0.000). Vaccination coverage was at a very low level so that only 6.3% of the subjects completed the hepatitis B vaccination in the past 1 to 5 years (when entering university). the mean HBS-Ab titer was significantly correlated with the time elapsed since the last vaccination (P<0.05) (It was better to write the exact P values). The immunity level among the married individuals and clinical students was significantly higher compared to the single individuals and preclinical students, respectively (P<0.05). Conclusions: Considering the low level of vaccination coverage among the students of Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences (6.3%) compared with other universities, it is better to design a program that will allow all students enrolled in such fields to receive hepatitis B vaccination when entering the university.