CDC Viral Hepatitis Updates: CDC Guidance for Evaluating Health-Care Personnel for Hepatitis B Virus Protection and for Administering Postexposure Management

CDC Viral Hepatitis Updates: CDC Guidance for Evaluating Health-Care Personnel for Hepatitis B Virus Protection and for Administering Postexposure Management

CDC Viral Hepatitis Updates: CDC Guidance for Evaluating Health-Care Personnel for Hepatitis B Virus Protection and for Administering Postexposure Management

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) sent this bulletin at 12/19/2013 01:50 PM EST

Viral Hepatitis Updates from CDC 

MMWR - CDC Guidance for Evaluating Health-Care Personnel for Hepatitis B Virus Protection and for Administering Postexposure ManagementThe MMWR is an extension of the ACIP 2011 recommendations for evaluating hepatitis B protection among health-care personnel (HCP) and administering post-exposure prophylaxis. The MMWR emphasizes the importance of administering Hepatitis B vaccination for all health-care personnel and provides explicit guidance for evaluating hepatitis B protection among previously vaccinated health-care personnel (particularly those who were vaccinated in infancy or adolescence), and it clarifies recommendations for postexposure management of health-care personnel exposed to blood or body fluids. This new guidance can assist clinicians, occupational health and student health providers, infection-control specialists, hospital and health-care training program administrators, and others in selection of an approach for assessing Hepatitis B protection for vaccinated health-care personnel. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr6210a1.htm

Testing Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders for Hepatitis B – Clinical Summary

Studies have shown that while Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) represent 5% of the total U.S. population, they make up 50% of hepatitis B cases. Nearly 2 in 3 people living with chronic hepatitis B do not know they are infected. Testing for chronic hepatitis B plays an important role in the detection, classification, management and medical care for patients with hepatitis B. This fact sheet outlines who should be tested for Hepatitis B with an HBsAg test, the geographic distribution of chronic hepatitis B infection worldwide, recommended follow-up for a positive HBsAg, and interpretation of serologic tests.http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/PDFs/HepB-API.pdf

Know Hepatitis B Campaign Materials
Know Hepatitis B a national communications campaign promoting Hepatitis B testing among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs).  Four languages have been added:  Burmese , Hmong,  Khmer, and Lao to campaign materials already available in Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, and English. English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and multi-lingual posters are also now available for ordering.