Immunization of babies born to HBsAg positive mothers: An audit on the delivery and completeness of follow up in Norfolk and Suffolk, United Kingdom.

Perinatal transmission of hepatitis B infection has increased in the UK over the last decade. Routine antenatal screening of pregnant mothers (based on HBsAg) provides an effective means to identify 'at risk' babies. Follow up of babies born to infected mothers involves 4 doses of vaccination and/or a single dose of HBIG at birth. In this study we report the outcome of follow up of babies born to infected mothers over a 5 y period. One hundred sixty-three babies born to HBsAg positive mothers were followed up to ascertain the completeness for immunization and serological testing. Vaccination completion was 99.4% (162 of babies) at birth (1st dose), 95.6% (152 babies) for the second dose (at 1st month), 94.3 % (148 babies) for the 3rd dose (at 2nd month) and 83.4% (106 babies) for the 4th dose (at 12 months). Additionally, at 12 months 29.9% (38) of babies had their blood tested serologically to ascertain infection status; all babies receiving antigen testing were HBsAg negative. The overall vaccination coverage was good, although there is scope to improve the coverage of 4th dose. However, the proportion of children who were serologically tested for surface antigen at 12 months was considerably lower and there is a greater need to test babies concurrently at the time of giving the 4(th) dose. The proposed dried blood spot testing which will be rolled out from September 2014 should address this issue.

Effect of exclusion policy on the control of outbreaks of suspected viral gastroenteritis: Analysis of outbreak investigations in care homes.

BACKGROUND: Norovirus is an important cause of gastroenteritis outbreaks in care homes. Differences exist in the recommended duration of exclusion for affected staff during an outbreak. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of outbreak reports in 2006 and 2007 managed by health protection staff in 2 counties with differing exclusion policies, one advising exclusion of affected staff and isolation of residents for 72 hours and the other for 48 hours after the resolution of symptoms. We compared attack rates and average numbers of cases in residents and staff, adjusting for type of care home and staffing rate. RESULTS: A total of 96 outbreaks were managed, 63 with a 72-hour exclusion policy and 33 with a 48-hour exclusion policy. The longer exclusion policy resulted in lower mean number of cases among staff (6.5 vs 9.6; P=.044) and a lower overall attack rate (32.6% vs 35.1%; P=.05). No differences in the mean number of cases or the attack rate among residents were seen. CONCLUSION: This brief study suggests that a longer exclusion policy reduces the number of cases among staff affected with viral gastroenteritis, possibly resulting in less staff absences. This could have potential benefits, particularly when resources are limited.