Low rate of vaccination and risk of incident hepatitis A among HIV-infected men who have sex with men in Seville, Southern Spain

Background

Periodic outbreaks of hepatitis A (HAV) infection in men who have sex with men (MSM) have been reported. Low vaccination uptake in HIV-infected individuals could drive new outbreaks. We aimed at evaluating the incidence of and risk factors for HAV infection in people living with HIV (PLWH) in our area. We also assessed the rates of HAV vaccination.

Methods

This was a prospective cohort study. 915 patients were included, 272 (30%) of them were anti-HAV seronegative at baseline.

Results

Twenty-six (9.6%) susceptible individuals became infected. Incident cases peaked in 2009–2010 and 2017–2018. Incident HAV infection was independently associated with MSM [adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence ratio): 4.39 (1.35–14.27), p = 0.014]. One hundred and five (38.6%) HAV seronegative patients were vaccinated, 21 (20%) of them did not respond, and one (1%) patient lost immunity against HAV. Four (29%) non-responders to vaccination showed incident HAV 5–9 years afterwards.

Conclusions

The incidence of HAV infection in a cohort of well-controlled PLWH remains low and stable, with intermittent outbreaks involving mainly non-immunized MSM. A significant proportion of PLWH remain susceptible to HAV infection due to insufficient vaccine uptake and limited response to vaccination. Importantly, patients not responding to HAV vaccination continue at risk of infection.