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Hepatitis B Vaccine: What you need to know.

Hepatitis B is a serious disease that affects the liver.  It is caused by the hepatitis B virus (H.B.V.).  H.B.V. can cause:

Acute (short-term) illness.  This can lead to:
• loss of appetite
• diarrhea and vomiting
• tiredness
• jaundice (yellow skin or eyes)
• pain in muscles, joints, and stomach

Acute illness is more common among adults. Children who become infected usually do not have acute illness.

Chronic (long-term) infection.  Some people go on to develop chronic H.B.V. infection. This can be very serious, and often leads to:
• liver damage (cirrhosis)
• liver cancer
• death

Chronic infection is more common among infants and children than among adults. People who are infected can spread H.B.V. to others, even if they don’t appear sick. 

• In 2005, about 51,000 people became infected with hepatitis B.

• About 1.25 million people in the United States have chronic H.B.V. infection.

• Each year about 3,000 to 5,000 people die from cirrhosis or liver cancer caused by H.B.V..

Hepatitis B virus is spread through contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected person.  A person can become infected by:

- contact with a mother’s blood and body fluids at the time of birth;

- contact with blood and body fluids through breaks in the skin such as bites, cuts, or sores;

- contact with objects that could have blood or body fluids on them such as toothbrushes or razors;

- having unprotected sex with an infected person;

- sharing needles when injecting drugs;

- being stuck with a used needle on the job.

Hepatitis B vaccine can prevent hepatitis B, and the serious consequences of H.B.V. infection, including liver cancer and cirrhosis.

Routine hepatitis B vaccination of U.S. children began in 1991.  Since then, the reported incidence of acute hepatitis B among children and adolescents has dropped by more than 95% – and by 75% in all age groups.

Hepatitis B vaccine is made from a part of the hepatitis B virus.  It cannot cause H.B.V. infection.

Hepatitis B vaccine is usually given as a series of 3 or 4 shots.  This vaccine series gives long-term protection from H.B.V. infection, possibly lifelong.

Children and Adolescents

• All children should get their first dose of hepatitis  B vaccine at birth and should have completed the  vaccine series by 6 through 18 months of age.

• Children and adolescents through 18 years of age who did not get the vaccine when they were younger should also be vaccinated.

Adults

• All unvaccinated adults at risk for H.B.V. infection should be vaccinated.  This includes:
  - sex partners of people infected with H.B.V.,
  - men who have sex with men,
  - people who inject street drugs,
  - people with more than one sex partner,
  - people with chronic liver or kidney disease,
  - people with jobs that expose them to human blood,
  - household contacts of people infected with H.B.V.,
  - residents and staff in institutions for the developmentally disabled,
  - kidney dialysis patients,
  - people who travel to countries where hepatitis B is common,
  - people with H.I.V. infection.

• Anyone else who wants to be protected from H.B.V. infection may be vaccinated.

• Anyone with a life-threatening allergy to baker’s yeast, or to any other component of the vaccine, should not get hepatitis B vaccine.  Tell your provider if you have any severe allergies.

• Anyone who has had a life-threatening allergic reaction to a previous dose of hepatitis B vaccine should not get another dose.

• Anyone who is moderately or severely ill when a dose of vaccine is scheduled should probably wait until they recover before getting the vaccine.

Pregnant women who need protection from H.B.V. infection may be vaccinated.

Hepatitis B is a very safe vaccine.  Most people do not have any problems with it.

The following mild problems have been reported:

• Soreness where the shot was given (up to about 1 person in 4).

•Temperature of 99.9 degrees Fahrenheit or higher (up to about 1 person in 15).

Severe problems are extremely rare.  Severe allergic reactions are believed to occur about once in 1.1 million doses.

A vaccine, like any medicine, could cause a serious reaction.  But the risk of a vaccine causing serious harm, or death, is extremely small.  More than 100 million people have gotten hepatitis B vaccine in the United States.

What should I look for?
• Any unusual condition, such as a high fever or behavior changes. Signs of a serious allergic reaction can include difficulty breathing, hoarseness or wheezing, hives,
 paleness, weakness, a fast heart beat or dizziness