PREVALENCE OF HEPATITIS B VIRUS INFECTION AMONG STUDENTS ATTENDING FEDERAL UNIVERSITY, GASHUA CLINIC

Abstract

Hepatitis B virus infection is a major global health problem of public health importance. It’s a major cause of liver disease worldwide. Therefore, this study was carried out to determine the prevalence of HBV infection among students attending Federal University Gashua Clinic. A self-administered questionnaire was used to obtained information from participants, and rapid tests were used for the detection of HBsAg. The data was analyzed using SPSS. Out of 200 students screened for HBV, 30(15%) were positive for HBsAg. This include 22(11%) among male students while 8(4%) were among their female counterpart. Also highest prevalence of HBV was recorded among students between age group >29 years (12%), followed by age group 26-29 (8%), then 22-25 (6%) and 18-21 years (4%) respectively. This study demonstrated that the prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection is high among this population and indicating high risk of horizontal transmission. Therefore, there is a need for prevention programs to target this vulnerable population.