In the U.S., 1 in 12 Asian Americans have hepatitis B, but two-thirds of the population do not know they are infected. Comprising about 6% of the U.S. population, AAPIs account for nearly 60% of chronic hepatitis B cases. Hepatitis B has become one of the greatest health disparities and is the leading cause of liver cancer for AAPIs, but treatments are available to prevent and reduce viral complications. Talk to your healthcare provider for more information.
Alaska's Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program
The American Academy of Pediatrics has an informational video about the importance of the hepatitis B vaccine at birth: AAP PSA.
Alaska's perinatal Hepatitis B program is managed through our immunization Nurse Consultant and is designed to identify, track, educate and continue to further prevent Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection.
Perinatal HBV transmission can be prevented by identifying HBV-infected (i.e., Hepatitis B surface antigen [HBsAg]-positive) pregnant women and providing Hepatitis B immune globulin and Hepatitis B vaccine to their infants within 12 hours of birth. HBV infection in a pregnant woman poses a serious risk to her infant at birth. Without postexposure immunoprophylaxis, approximately 40% of infants born to HBV-infected mothers in the United States will develop chronic HBV infection, approximately one-fourth of whom will eventually die from chronic liver disease.
National guidelines call for the following:
- Universal screening of pregnant women for HBsAg during each pregnancy
- Case management of HBsAg-positive mothers and their infants
- Provision of immunoprophylaxis for infants born to infected mothers, including Hepatitis B vaccine and Hepatitis B immune globulin
- Routine vaccination of all infants with the Hepatitis B vaccine series, with the first dose administered at birth
Forms and Resources
Alaska Immunization Helpline
Phone: 907-269-8088
Phone: 888-430-4321 (toll free)
Email: immune@alaska.gov