Reference: 2011-007 - Hepatitis B in the Kimberley region in the post-vaccination era

Researchers: Dr Emma Griffiths, Dr Carole Reeve (Kimberley Population Health Unit)

Funding: Internal

Project summary: Hepatitis B is a vaccine preventable disease with the potential to cause significant morbidity and mortality in those chronically infected. The widespread introduction of hepatitis B vaccine has substantially reduced the impact of hepatitis B worldwide. Prior to the introduction of universal hepatitis B vaccination, the indigenous population of the Kimberley region was identified as a high risk group by international standards. Concerns have been raised, however, about the relative efficacy of the vaccine in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, where the background risk remains much higher than the Australian average. Within the Kimberley region, case reports of chronic infection occurring despite full vaccination are known to the Kimberley Population Health Unit. Additionally, the epidemiology of hepatitis B in the Kimberley region has previously been inaccurately documented due to the inclusion of Christmas Island and Curtin detention centre detainees in summary statistics. This has led to spuriously low Aboriginal: non-Aboriginal rate ratios in published summary statistics, and impedes the evaluation of regional interventions. Surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases is an intrinsic role of the Kimberley Population Health Unit and is an essential public health service to the community. This project will aim to document the epidemiology of hepatitis B in the Kimberley region, with a focus on those fully vaccinated as children. The results will help to provide an epidemiological framework for program evaluation and identify any concerns relating to vaccine efficacy in the Kimberley region.

Progress: Completed in 2013