- Title
- Viral hepatitis in correctional facilities in the Northern Territory of Australia 2003–2017
- Creator
- Sullivan, Richard P.; Baird, Rob; Freeman, Kevin; Heggie, Hugh; Davis, Joshua S.; Marshall, Catherine S.; Davies, Jane
- Relation
- BMC Infectious Diseases Vol. 21, Issue 1, no. 584
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12879-021-06286-2
- Publisher
- BioMed Central
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2021
- Description
- Background: The demographic of Northern Territory prison population differs than elsewhere in Australia and the prevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C may therefore be somewhat different from other jurisdictions. There has been no study which has specifically described the serological results of a large proportion of prisoners in Northern Territory correctional facilities over an extended period of time. Methods: This retrospective longitudinal study reviewed serological results and testing rates for hepatitis B, and hepatitis C performed in correctional facilities in the Northern Territory of Australia between July 1st, 2003 and June 30th, 2017. Results: The proportion of positive records over 14 years for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) was 641/12,066 (5.3, 95% CI 4.9–5.7), for hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) 4937/12,138 (40.1, 95%CI 39.8–41.6), for hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) 6966/13,303 (52.4, 95% CI 51.5–53.2), and for hepatitis C antibody 569/12,153 (4.7, 95% CI 4.3–5.1). The proportion of prisoners tested for hepatitis B and hepatitis C has decreased since 2015, while a high proportion of prisoners remain non-immune to hepatitis B. Conclusion: There is a relatively high proportion of positive serological markers of hepatitis B, and a lower proportion of positive hepatitis C serology in the Northern Territory’s correctional facilities compared to overall Australian rates. As the proportion of prisoners tested for hepatitis B and C has decreased recently, and a high proportion of prisoners remain non-immune to hepatitis B, there are opportunities to increase testing and vaccination rates in this population.
- Subject
- hepatitis B; hepatitis C; prisoner health; Northern Territory; SDG 3; Sustainable Development Goals
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1474684
- Identifier
- uon:49345
- Identifier
- ISSN:1471-2334
- Language
- eng
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