[Evaluation of hepatitis B vaccination in newborns at high risk of infection by vertical transmission].

Objective: Hepatitis B (HB) is a preventable disease and a public health challenge due to its high morbidity and mortality. This study was conducted within the framework of the World Health Organization's strategy, which includes establishing prophylactic measures to prevent vertical transmission. The aim was to assess the degree of implementation of HB preventive measures to avoid vertical transmission in newborns in Spain.

Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out with women who gave birth in 2022 in four autonomous communities in Spain. Clinical databases from primary care, hospitals, vaccination, and microbiology were used. Continuous variables were expressed as the mean and standard deviation or median and interquartile range depending on their distribution. Categorical variables were described by the absolute and relative frequency of each category.

Results: The coverage of hepatitis B screening during pregnancy ranged from 76% to 99.3%, the prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection in pregnant women ranged from 0.23% to 0.60%, and the compliance rate varied between 30.6% and 100%, depending on the autonomous community.

Conclusions: It is necessary to raise awareness among healthcare professionals to properly record care activities and to improve the interoperability of information systems, screening, and vaccination records to evaluate the implementation of preventive measures against hepatitis B, such as vaccination and immunoglobulin administration.