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Hepatitis B - Management
Basis for recommendation
Pregnancy
- Information on the risks in pregnancy is based on the United Kingdom national guideline on the management of the viral hepatitides A, B, and C [BASHH, 2008], guidance from the Health Protection Agency [HPA, 2006], and an expert review article [James-Koziel and Thio, 2009].
Breastfeeding
- The information on breastfeeding is from the British Liver Trust [British Liver Trust, 2009]. Any residual risk of transmission through the breast milk of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive women is almost completely abolished by ensuring that the infant is promptly vaccinated. Although the breast milk of HBsAg-positive women may be positive for the virus, there have been no reports of hepatitis B transmission through breastfeeding — even before the availability of hepatitis B vaccine for infants.
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