The Health Bureau (SSM) said in a statement on Friday that Macau has achieved “remarkable” results in the prevention and control of hepatitis B in children, having become one of the first regions in the Western Pacific area to control the disease since 2008.
Hepatitis B is mainly transmitted through mother-to-child transmission and blood, and can cause serious diseases such as cirrhosis and liver cancer, according to the statement.
According to the “Macau Health Survey” in 2016, among Macau’s adult population, the positive rate of hepatitis B surface antigen was 7.6 percentage. According to the data of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Macau is classified as a moderately prevalent area of hepatitis B.
The statement underlined that the hepatitis B vaccine is the main way to prevent the disease, after three doses of which, according to the WHO, more than 95 percent of infants, children and young adults can produce antibodies at a protective level that can last for at least 20 years, with lifelong immunity possible.
All babies in Macau are inoculated with the hepatitis B vaccine at birth, so that the coverage rate of three doses of hepatitis B vaccine at the age of one is maintained at a high level which stands at about 98 percent, effectively protecting infants from hepatitis B after birth, the statement said, adding that the rate of infection with the hepatitis virus in local children aged under five is less than one percent.
The statement underlined that since 2020, the bureau has provided hepatitis B virus (HBV) Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) testing, condition assessment and prenatal preventive treatment for hepatitis B surface antigen-positive pregnant women in line with WHO guidelines to eliminate mother-to-child transmission.
In view of the fact that there is no cure for chronic hepatitis B, patients should always pay close attention to self-health management in daily life to prevent the disease from progressing into cirrhosis and liver cancer, the statement pointed out. In recent years, the bureau noted in the statement that it has strengthened public awareness of related aspects through health lectures and health promotion activities, focusing on the three key points of patients’ self-health management, namely regular physical check-ups, medical assessment for appropriate treatment, and leading a healthy lifestyle.
This undated handout photo provided by the Health Bureau (SSM) on Friday shows a nurse vaccinating an infant.
