Trends in Disease Burden of Hepatitis B Infection in Jiangsu Province, China, 1990-2021

Abstract

Background The incidence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) has decreased year by year in China after the expansion of vaccination, but there is still a high disease burden in Jiangsu Province of China.

Methods The year-by-year incidence data of HBV in Jiangsu Province from 1990 to 2021 were collected. The incidence rates of males and females age groups were clustered by systematic clustering, and the incidence rates of each age group were analyzed and studied by using Joinpoint regression model and age-period-cohort effect model (APC).

Results Joinpoint regression model and APC model showed a general decrease in HBV prevalence in both males and females. In addition, the results of the APC model showed that the age, period, and cohort effects of patients all affected the incidence of HBV, and the incidence was higher in males than in females. The incidence is highest in the population between the ages of 15 and 30 years (mean: 21.76/100,000), especially in males (mean: 31.53/100,000) than in females (mean:11.67/100,000). Another high-risk group is those over 60 years of age (mean: 21.40/100,000), especially males (mean: 31.17/100,000) than females (mean: 11.63/100,000). The period effect of the APC model suggests that HBV vaccination is effective in reducing the incidence of HBV in the population.

Conclusions The incidence of HBV in Jiangsu Province showed a gradual downward trend, but the disease burden in males was higher than that in females. The incidence is higher and increasing rapidly in the population between the ages of 15 and 30 years and people over 60 years of age. More targeted prevention and control measures should be implemented for males and the elderly.

Note:
Funding Declaration: This study was partly supported by National Key Research and Development Program of China, 2021YFC2301604, self-supporting Program of Guangzhou Laboratory, SRPG22-007 and research Project on Education and Teaching Reform of Undergraduate Universities of Fujian Province, FBJG20210260.

Conflicts of Interest: None

Ethical Approval: The study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The epidemiology data we used for this study was without specific and detailed patient information and therefore the informed consent was waived by the ethics committee/institutional review board (IRB) of the Medical Ethics Committee of Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention. All processes were carried out following the relevant guidelines and regulations of the Helsinki Declaration.

Keywords: HBV, Joinpoint regression model, Age-period-cohort model, Systematic clustering