Olakunde BO, Itanyi IU, Onyeka TC, et al.
Nigeria offers a universal hepatitis B birth-dose vaccine, but evidence on how uptake relates to maternal hepatitis B status is limited. This study analyzed data from the Healthy Beginning Initiative program in Benue State, Nigeria (2016-2018), covering 6,269 mothers screened for hepatitis B during pregnancy who answered a question on infant immunization. About 10% of women tested positive, and overall birth-dose coverage was 64%, with no significant difference between hepatitis B-exposed (63.2%) and unexposed (63.8%) infants. Among positive mothers, younger age and antenatal care attendance increased vaccination likelihood while first pregnancies decreased it; among negative mothers, lower education decreased likelihood while antenatal care and institutional delivery increased it. Findings highlight the need to improve birth-dose uptake, particularly among hepatitis B-exposed infants at risk of perinatal transmission.
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