Vol. 4, Issue 4, Part C (2018)

Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a public health issue and a major cause of mortality especially in developing countries. Vertical transmission of hepatitis B virus infection is thought to be one of the major routes of transmission in developing countries. In spite of this, routine antenatal screening for hepatitis infection is not yet practiced in many hospitals. This study was undertaken with the aim of determining the prevalence of HBsAg among women attending ante-natal clinic at PBM Hospital Bikaner Rajasthan . A total of two thousand two hundred twelve women were screened for this study for HBsAg using the one step rapid HBsAg Test Kit (Alere Trueline, Alere Medical Pvt.Ltd, Gurgaon, Haryana, India). The HBsAg prevalence was determined to be 0.54% (12/2212) with the highest prevalence (0.27%) recorded in pregnant women aged 25-30 years. Hence it is necessary for screening of pregnant women with Hepatitis B to know the prevalence and prevent further transmission by effective treatment and with necessary precautions. This in turn improves the outcome of the patient and the newborn.