Hepatitis B in Poland in 2022

Objective Assessment of the epidemiological situation of hepatitis B in Poland in 2022 compared to previous years, considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and methods The epidemiological situation was assessed based on the analysis of data from individual reports on hepatitis B and HBV infections registered by local sanitary and epidemiological stations in the Epibaza electronic system. Data published in the annual bulletins "Infectious diseases and poisonings in Poland" and "Vaccinations in Poland" and data on deaths were also used. Results In 2022, a total of 2,500 cases of hepatitis B were registered, including 29 cases of acute hepatitis B. The incidence of acute hepatitis B was 0.08/100,000 and was more than 2.5 times higher than in 2021. Acute hepatitis B cases occurred in 11 of 16 voivodeships, most in the Mazowieckie voivodeship. 45% of acute cases were infections among migrants, there were no cases among children and young adults up to 25 years of age. In 2022, 2,471 chronic and unknown-phase cases (UNK) were registered, the diagnosis rate was 6.53/100,000 and was lower by 21% than the median for 2016-2020. 8.7% of chronic and UNK cases were considered imported, mostly from Ukraine. The most frequently identified probable route of infection was transmission by medical procedures. The vaccination coverage of 1-year-olds with 3 doses of hepatitis B vaccine was slightly higher than in 2021 and amounted to 89.8%. Conclusions In 2022, a further increase in the number of diagnosed hepatitis B and HBV infections was observed, after a sharp decline in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The increase in the number of diagnosed hepatitis B cases in 2022 was also influenced by the wave of migration from Ukraine. In 2022, the previously observed decline in vaccination coverage in 1-year-olds with 3 doses of hepatitis B vaccine was stopped.