Azuonwu Obioma
Professor, Nigeria
Biography
Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Rivers State University of Science and Technology Nkpolu, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
Abstract
The hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major cause of viral hepatitis which can lead to inflammation of the liver and its prevalent in the tropics such as Nigeria remains a huge public health concern. The prevalence of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) which is a component of HBV was determined among indigenes of Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State in the oil-rich Niger Delta Region. A total of 1000 randomly selected subjects from the Community Health Center Edeogha-Ekpeye, Community Health Center Ochigba, Comprehensive Health Center Ahoada, Ahoada General Hospital, Ula-upata, Ahoada Timber Market and Ogbo town were recruited for these study after due consent was obtained. Self and well-structured questionnaires were distributed to the respondents to also obtain their socio-demographic data and their blood samples collected for serological assay for HBsAg using the Acon HBsAg test strips. Nonetheless, 46.40% of the respondents were males and 53.60% were females. The total prevalence of hepatitis infection was 14% out of which 5.7% were males and 8.3% were females. Of those infected, 4.8% were within ages 25-34, 4% were within the ages of 15-24, 3.9% were within the 35-44 and 1.3% was within 45-54. However, in terms of the educational status, 6% of positive cases were those with the senior school certificate, 3.6% were those with the First School Leaving Certificate, 3.3% had no educational qualification, 1% were BSc holders while 0.1% were MSc holders. Nevertheless, in terms of the occupational status, 3.1% were students, 1.8% farmers, 1.7% applicants, 1.3% civil servants while 0.3 were fishermen. Furthermore, with respect to marital status, 7.5% were married, 4.9% were widowed while 1.6% were single. Among those infected, 13.4% of them knew the use of condoms could prevent HBsAg infection while 0.6% said they were not aware. Based on location, Ahoada General Hospital had a high prevalence of 47.14% of the total prevalence, Comprehensive Health Center Ahoada 13.57%, Ula-upata community 10%, Community Health Center Ochigba 8.57%, Community Health Center Edeogha-Ekpeye and Ogbo town 7.14% respectively and Ahoada Timber Market 6.43%. The studies show that marital status, age and occupation played a huge role in determining the prevalence. The need to strengthen the importance of health education especially in our rural communities to engender behavioral change among the weak and vulnerable subjects in our villages in Niger Delta cannot be over emphasized. It is strongly believed that continuous enlightenment and prompt diagnosis and treatment would help to reduce the epidemic trend in our society.