J Korean Pediatr Soc.  1999 Feb;42(2):180-185.

A Seroepidemiologic Study on Hepatitis A in Seoul, Korea

• Yang DW
• Lee YA
• Shim JY
• Park JY
• Jung HL
• Park MS
• Keum DH

Abstract

PURPOSE: The prevalence of hepatitis A(HAV) in a certain community reflects that community's living standard and hygienic condition. and the pattern of HAV infection differs over time and geography, with varying widely from country to country and even within the same city. Recently a shift in prevalence has been observed in cases from childhood to adulthood. We studied HAV antibody prevalence in the general and welfare population of Seoul.
METHODS
From March to July 1997, a total of 686 subjects were tested for HAV antibody, of which 586 samples were collected from patients in Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, and the remaining 100 samples from the inmates of a welfare facility.
RESULTS
The overall seropositive rate of HAV was 26.4%(181/686). In the hospital patient group, the seropositive rates were 72% in subjects aged below 6 months, 8.5% in 7-12 months, 0% in 1-4 years, 1.9% in 5-9 years, 0% in 10-14 years, 7.4% in 15-19 years, 64.3% in 20-29 years, and 100% in subjects aged over 30 years. The welfare-facility-inmate group showed significantly higher positive rates than the age-matched hospital patient group(P<0.05).
CONCLUSION
As the socioeconomic condition in Korea has improved, the HAV seropositive rate in school-aged children has dramatically decreased in the last 15 years. But even in the same city, the seropositive rate of HAV differed according to the hygienic level. The seropositive rate of HAV in the pediatric group was very low, which suggests the increasing possibility of clinical HAV infection in adults in the near future.

MeSH Terms

Adult
Child
Geography
Hepatitis A*
Hepatitis*
Humans
Korea*
Prevalence
Seoul*
Seroepidemiologic Studies*
Socioeconomic Factors