Hepatitis A Immunity and Paediatric Liver Transplantation—A Single-Centre Analysis
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 15719697 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Tobias Laue (0009-0003-3784-1444, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, corresponding author), Johanna Ohlendorf (0000-0002-7994-7656, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover), Christoph Leiskau (0000-0002-7243-8728, University of Göttingen), Ulrich Baumann (0000-0002-0162-0266, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 9 |
| Issue | 12 |
| Pages | 1953-1953 |
| Publication date | 2022-12-12 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Children (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2227-9067 • E-ISSN: 2227-9067 |
| Publisher | Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH) |
| DOI | 10.3390/children9121953 |
| PMID | 36553396 |
| OpenAlex | W4312141155 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 24 |
Following paediatric solid organ liver transplantation, risk of infection is high, both in the short and long term. Even though an infection with hepatitis A virus (HAV) is often asymptomatic and self-limited in children, some case studies describe severe cases leading to death. Vaccinations offer simple, safe and cheap protection. However, data on vaccination rates against hepatitis A in children with liver disease are scarce. Moreover, the vaccine is only approved from the age of one year old. At the same time, up to 30% of children with liver disease are transplanted within the first year of life, so the window of opportunity for vaccination is limited. This retrospective, observational, single-centre study examines the HAV immunity in paediatric liver transplant recipients before and after the first year of transplantation. Vaccination records of 229 of 279 (82.1%) children transplanted between January 2003 and June 2021 were analysed. Of 139 eligible children aged ≥ 1 year old, only 58 (41.7%) were vaccinated at least with one HAV dose prior to transplantation. In addition, seven patients received the vaccine below one year of age. After one or two doses, 38.5% or 90.6% of 65 patients were anti-HAV-IgG positive, respectively. This percentage remained stable up to the first annual check-up. For children vaccinated only once, a shorter interval from vaccination to transplantation is a risk factor for lack of immunity. Thus, HAV immunisation should be started earlier in liver transplant candidates to improve immunity in this high-risk group
Asymptomatic · Hepatitis · Hepatitis A · Hepatitis B · Immune system · Immunity · Liver disease · Liver transplantation · Observational study · Vaccination · Hepatitis B Virus Studies · Hepatitis Viruses Studies and Epidemiology · Medicine · Viral gastroenteritis research and epidemiology · Immunology · Internal Medicine · Pediatrics · Transplantation
| Highly cited | No |
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