Hepatitis B infection and risk factors among pregnant women and their male partners in the Baby Shower Program in Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Objectives To determine the population prevalence and determinants of Hepatitis B (Hep B) status, and status discordance, among pregnant women and their male partners in Nigeria. Methods Cross-sectional study assessing the seroprevalence of Hep B virus in a cohort of 16, 920 pregnant women and their male partners in northcentral Nigeria. Rapid HBsAg antibody test was used for Hep B diagnosis. Demographic, socioeconomic and behavioural information was collected through interviewer-administered questionnaires, and evaluated as determinants of Hep B status and couple status discordance using logistic regression. Results Of 16,920 participants who had a Hep B test result, 6,750 couples and 1,316 discordant couples were identified. The prevalence of Hep B among all participants was 10.9%, with lower prevalence among pregnant women (10.2%) than their male partners (11.9%), p Conclusion The prevalence of Hep B among pregnant women and their male partners in northcentral Nigeria is high. A large-scale intervention is required to reduce Hep B prevalence in this setting.