Spatiotemporal patterns and risk factors concerning hepatitis B virus infections in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area of China

Spatial-temporal analysis of hepatitis B in Fujian Province, China in 2012-2021

Background

Fujian Province has one of the highest reported incidences of hepatitis B virus infection in China. This study aimed to provide a theoretical framework for preventing and controlling hepatitis B in Fujian Province, and to assess the trends and the spatial-temporal distribution patterns of hepatitis B in this region.

Methods

Data on hepatitis B cases were extracted from the National Notifiable Infectious Disease Surveillance System. Spatial autocorrelation analysis, trend surface analysis, and spatial-temporal scanning statistics were used to identify the spatial and aggregation patterns at the county level. The Joinpoint was used to assess the reported incidence trends.

Results

The average reported incidence of hepatitis B in Fujian from 2012 to 2021 was 14.46/10,000 population, with 583,262 notified cases. The age-adjusted reported incidence of hepatitis B decreased from 17.44/10,000 population in 2012 to 11.88/10,000 population in 2021, with an average reduction in the annual percentage change of 4.5%. There were obvious spatial-temporal aggregation characteristics in hepatitis B cases, and a high-incidence area was located in eastern Fujian. Spatio-temporal scanning statistics revealed four levels of aggregation of hepatitis B reporting rates. The first level of aggregation area included Minhou, Gulou, Jin'an, Taijiang, and nine other districts and counties.

Conclusion

The incidence of hepatitis B is declining in Fujian Province. Spatial clusters of hepatitis B cases in Fujian Province were identified, and high-risk areas in eastern Fujian still exist. Closely monitoring the general patterns in the occurrence of hepatitis B and implementing focused control and preventative strategies are important.

Epidemiology of hepatitis B virus infection among preconception couples in South China: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVES

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global public health threat, and couples of reproductive age comprise a key population in aiming to reduce both the vertical and horizontal transmission of HBV. We aimed to update knowledge on the seroepidemiology status of HBV in Guangdong, China among a large number of couples planning conception, and to identify high-risk subgroups.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study was performed in Guangdong, China from 2014 to 2017.

SETTING

The data were collected from 641 642 couples (1 283 284 individuals) participating in the National Free Preconception Health Examination Project in Guangdong, China from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2017. For each participant, sociodemographic data were obtained and a serum sample was tested for HBV infection status.

RESULTS

161 204 individuals (12.56%) were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg+), and 47 318 (3.69%) were positive for both HBsAg and hepatitis B e antigen (HBsAg+ and HBeAg+). There was a higher prevalence of HBsAg+ (12.77% vs 9.42%, p<0.05) and HBsAg+ and HBeAg+ (3.77% vs 2.45%, p<0.05) among the participants with a Guangdong household registration than a non-Guangdong household registration. Similarly, the prevalence of HBsAg (13.26% vs 11.72%, p<0.05) and HBsAg+ and HBeAg+ (4.31% vs 2.94%, p<0.05) was higher among participants not living in the Pearl River Delta than those living in the Pearl River Delta. At the couple level, 12 446 couples (1.94%) were both positive; in 51 849 (8.08%), only the wife was positive; in 84 463 (13.16%), only the husband was positive. Moreover, HBsAg+ prevalence was lowest in couples where both individuals were vaccinated (18.63%) and highest in couples where neither the wife or husband was vaccinated (24.46%).

CONCLUSION

There was a relatively high HBsAg+ prevalence in married couples in this high-epidemic region and urgent prevention strategies are required, such as ensuring access to health services for those not living in the Pearl River Delta, and expanding vaccine programmes to high-risk adults.

Changing incidence of hepatitis B and persistent infection risk in adults: a population-based follow-up study from 2011 in China

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to estimate hepatitis B incidence and chronicity risk in rural adults in China under the background of eliminating viral hepatitis.

METHODS

Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) screening was conducted every 2 years in demonstration areas since 2011. Individuals with baseline HBsAg-negative were included. Incidence was calculated as the number of HBsAg-positive cases divided by the total person-times. HBsAg-positive individuals were followed up to study the persistent infection (> 6 months), chronic infection (> 12 months), and recovery with hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs). The chi-square test and cox proportional regression analysis were performed.

RESULTS

There were 8,942 incident cases over 2,138,532 person-years, yielding an average incidence of 0.42 per 100 person-years. HBV incidence decreased rapidly in both genders and all age groups and then kept stable. Male gender, low population density, low gross domestic product per capita, and islanders were associated with higher incidence. Of the positive cases, 4,989 (55.8%) patients were followed up. The persistent infection, chronic infection, and recovery with anti-HBs rates were 32.3%, 31.0%, and 31.4%, respectively. Persistent or chronic infection was more common in younger adults and males, while seroconversion had no concern with gender or age.

CONCLUSIONS

HBV incidence in adult rural residents was decreasing and stayed low. The chronicity rate was relatively high and protective antibodies were induced in only one third. The importance of population-based screening and vaccination for susceptible individuals should be addressed.

Sero-epidemiology study of hepatitis B virus surface antibodies from 2017 to 2019 among Chinese young adults in Hunan Province: A three-year retrospective study

BACKGROUND

Data on the epidemiology characteristics of hepatitis B surface antibodies (anti-HBs) are lacking among central southern undeveloped areas of China, especially for young adults. This study aims to demonstrate the sero-epidemiology characteristics of HBsAb among young adults.

AIMS

The aim of this study is to demonstrate the epidemiological characteristics in prevalence of serum anti-HBs in college students of a university in Hunan Province, China.

METHODS

Data were derived from the health records (including serum HBsAb data) among freshmen of a university from 2017 to 2019 in Hunan Province, China.

RESULTS

A total of 13,426 freshmen with complete data who were born in Hunan Province were collected. The 3-year total prevalence of anti-HBs in freshmen was 44.75% with no statistically significant sex difference, the prevalence of anti-HBs is 46.93%, 53.13%, and 34.79% for 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively. There are significant geographic differences of prevalence of anti-HBs in freshmen from different areas. The lowest prevalence of anti-HBs was 31.80% in freshmen from Xiangtan, and the highest prevalence of anti-HBs was 53.10% in freshmen from Yongzhou.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of serum anti-HBs among the freshmen in Hunan from 2017 to 2019 is much lower than the average national level, and the prevalence in 2019 is significantly lower than that in 2017 and 2019. There are significant differences in different time and areas of the prevalence of anti-HBs. There is a necessity to carry out area-specific intensive immunization plan in a timely manner among young population in Hunan Province, China.

Spatiotemporal heterogeneity and its determinants of COVID-19 transmission in typical labor export provinces of China

Background

Previous studies have indicated that the risk of infectious disease spread is greatest in locations where a population has massive and convenient access to the epicenter of an outbreak. However, the spatiotemporal variations and risk determinants of COVID-19 in typical labor export regions of China remain unclear. Understanding the geographical distribution of the disease and the socio-economic factors affecting its transmission is critical for disease prevention and control.

Methods

A total of 2152 COVID-19 cases were reported from January 21 to February 24, 2020 across the 34 cities in Henan and Anhui. A Bayesian spatiotemporal hierarchy model was used to detect the spatiotemporal variations of the risk posed by COVID-19, and the GeoDetector q statistic was used to evaluate the determinant power of the potential influence factors.

Results

The risk posed by COVID-19 showed geographical spatiotemporal heterogeneity. Temporally, there was an outbreak period and control period. Spatially, there were high-risk regions and low-risk regions. The high-risk regions were mainly in the southwest areas adjacent to Hubei and cities that served as economic and traffic hubs, while the low-risk regions were mainly in western Henan and eastern Anhui, far away from the epicenter. The accessibility, local economic conditions, and medical infrastructure of Wuhan in Hubei province all played an important role in the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of COVID-19 transmission. The results indicated that the q statistics of the per capita GDP and the proportion of primary industry GDP were 0.47 and 0.47, respectively. The q statistic of the population flow from Wuhan was 0.33. In particular, the results showed that the q statistics for the interaction effects between population density and urbanization, population flow from Wuhan, per capita GDP, and the number of doctors were all greater than 0.8.

Conclusions

COVID-19 showed significant spatiotemporal heterogeneity in the labor export regions of China. The high-risk regions were mainly located in areas adjacent to the epicenter as well as in big cities that served as traffic hubs. Population access to the epicenter, as well as local economic and medical conditions, played an important role in the interactive effects of the disease transmission.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12879-021-05926-x.

Spatiotemporal Characteristics and Driving Force Analysis of Flash Floods in Fujian Province

Flash floods are one of the most destructive natural disasters. The comprehensive identification of the spatiotemporal characteristics and driving factors of a flash flood is the basis for the scientific understanding of the formation mechanism and the distribution characteristics of flash floods. In this study, we explored the spatiotemporal patterns of flash floods in Fujian Province from 1951 to 2015. Then, we analyzed the driving forces of flash floods in geomorphic regions with three different grades based on three methods, namely, geographical detector, principal component analysis, and multiple linear regression. Finally, the sensitivity of flash floods to the gross domestic product, village point density, annual maximum one-day precipitation (Rx1day), and annual total precipitation from days > 95th percentile (R95p) was analyzed. The analytical results indicated that (1) The counts of flash floods rose sharply from 1988, and the spatial distribution of flash floods mainly extended from the coastal low mountains, hills, and plain regions of Fujian (IIA2) to the low-middle mountains, hills, and valley regions in the Wuyi mountains (IIA4) from 1951 to 2015. (2) From IIA2 to IIA4, the impact of human activities on flash floods was gradually weakened, while the contribution of precipitation indicators gradually strengthened. (3) The sensitivity analysis results revealed that the hazard factors of flash floods in different periods and regions had significant differences in Fujian Province. Based on the above results, it is necessary to accurately forecast extreme precipitation and improve the economic development model of the IIA2 region.