Prevention of Chronic Neonatal Hepatitis B Virus Infection with Antibody to the Hepatitis B Surface Antigen

Abstract

The efficacy of specific-antibody treatment in preventing hepatitis B virus infection in infants born to mothers positive for the hepatitis B surface antigen was evaluated. Four babies were treated one to six days after delivery with antibody to the antigen and remained antigen negative for five to 14 months. In six of seven similar but untreated babies, chronic antigenemia developed within five to 12 weeks of birth and persisted in all up to the age of 36 months. Two of seven umbilical-cord serums were positive, by radioimmunoassay only, but this finding does not establish in utero infection. The current prevalence of the surface antigen in mothers at term is 0.83 per cent at three Denver hospitals. Treatment with specific antibody appears to be effective, as compared to no treatment, in preventing neonatal hepatitis B virus infection. (N Engl J Med 291: 1378–1380, 1974)