Risk Factors of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq: A Cross-Sectional Study
Viral hepatitis is a major public health challenge as dictated by the World Health Organization... See more
Viral hepatitis is a major public health challenge as dictated by the World Health Organization (WHO), with a figure of 254 million people living with hepatitis B infection. It is one of the communicable diseases for which mortality is increasing. In 2022, an estimated 1.2 million new people contracted the infection, and 1.1 million patients died of hepatitis B and related complications, including liver cirrhosis, liver failure, and hepatocellular carcinoma. This datum makes it the second leading infectious cause of death, superseded only by tuberculosis (TB).1 Hepatitis B infection is caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV), an enveloped DNA virus that is primarily transmitted by exposure to infected body fluids (mainly blood and mucosal secretions). The methods of transmission include unprotected sexual intercourse, intravenous drug injections, transfusion of blood products, dialysis, tattooing, needle-stick injury, and vertical transmission.2 Despite having both active and passive immunization by an effective vaccine and hepatitis B immunoglobulin, respectively, it has been difficult to control the spread of hepatitis B in developing countries because of the lack of a standardized program to deliver and supervise these immunizations.3,4 Imperative to any intention of public health authorities fighting against hepatitis B is a set of data on the prevalence and risk factors associated with the disease in order to develop an effective and targeted plan. WHO data clearly show that the worldwide distribution of hepatitis B varies by region, ranging from a prevalence of 0.5% in North and South America to 5.8% in Africa.1,5 It is also expected that the contribution of each risk factor associated with hepatitis B varies depending on cultural trends, which is extremely important to consider when planning to limit the spread of infections in general and hepatitis B in particular.6,7 Therefore, we present this study to investigate various risk factors associated with hepatitis B in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.
2025-03
