Prevalence of viral hepatitis B in Ghana between 2015 and 2019: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Chronic hepatitis B (HBV) remains a significant public health problem in Ghana and past reviews conducted could not calculate a nationwide prevalence of the disease due to lack of primary research for some regions of the country. We therefore conducted this study to summarize and update the available information on HBV infection burden (prevalence) in Ghana from 2015-2019.We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar to retrieve primary studies published in peer-reviewed journals from November 2015 to September 2019, assessing the prevalence of HBV among the Ghanaian populace. The review included 21 studies across all ten old regions of Ghana with a total sample population of 29 061. The HBV prevalence was estimated for subpopulations as follows: 8.36% in the adult population, 14.30% in the adolescent population, and 0.55% in children under five years (pre-school). Among adults, HBV infection prevalence was the highest in the special occupation group (14.40%) and the lowest prevalence rate of 7.17% was recorded among blood donors. Prevalence was lower in the north than in the southern part of the country. The Ashanti region had the most studies at 6/21 (29%), while no study was identified for the Upper West region. Across the country, the highest HBV infection prevalence rates were recorded in the age group of 20-40 years. The burden of hepatitis B is enormous and remains an important public health issue in Ghana. Addressing the issue will require an integrated public health strategy and rethinking of the implementation gaps in the current HBV infection control program. This will help propel the country towards eliminating the disease by 2030.

Infectious Hepatitis B Negatively Impacts Lifestyles of Affected Individuals in Ejura-Sekyedumasi District of Ghana

“…The Ashanti region had the most studies at 6/21 (29%), while no study was identified for the Upper West region. Across the country, the highest HBV infection prevalence rates were recorded in the age group of 20-40 years [13]. This confirms earlier findings on sero-prevalence of hepatitis B in cirrhosis of the liver in Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.…”

“…Ghana has long been considered to be among the highly endemic countries of sub-Saharan Africa with more than 8% of the population suspected to harbour chronic infection [13]. The review included 21 studies across all ten old regions of Ghana with a total sample population of 29 061 showing recently that the burden of hepatitis B is enormous and remains an important public health issue in Ghana.…”

“…For the past decade, hepatitis B has become a serious public health issue in Ghana due to high media publicity and increased health education. Also, for these past years Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and corporate bodies have joined hands in various activities to fight the disease incidence through screening and vaccination [13]. Public health burden of HBV infection in Ghana is unknown, although the country has long been considered to be among the highly endemic countries of sub-Saharan Africa with more than 8% of the population suspected to harbour chronic infection which has the potential to rapidly spread [5,11,3].…”

“…Public health burden of HBV infection in Ghana is unknown, although the country has long been considered to be among the highly endemic countries of sub-Saharan Africa with more than 8% of the population suspected to harbour chronic infection which has the potential to rapidly spread [5,11,3]. Results from a few Ghanaian studies have supported this hypothesis: the prevalence of HBV surface antigen (HBsAg), a marker of chronic HBV infection, ranged from 6 to 15% among blood donors when HBV screening was earlier introduced among selected populations in Ghana and monitored through various updated clinical reports [14,7,4,13]. Among the medical students and health workers, prevalence of HBsAg was previously detected (ranged from 8 to 11%) and was very common among blood donors in Sierra Leone and Ghana [15,16,7].…”

Distribution and Determinants of Etiologies and Complications of Chronic Liver Diseases Among Patients at a Tertiary Hospital in a Lower Economic Region of Ghana

“…There was high risk of HBV infection among young and middle age adults. Other studies in Ghana have identified high prevalence of HBV among young and middle age adults [20,21]. Young and/or middle age adults are more likely to engage in high-risk sexual activities; one of the most frequent routes of transmission for HBV among adults [22].…”