Hepatitis B virus infection is a public health problem and a major cause of morbidity and mortality, particularly in developing countries(4).
In this study found to be that the magnitude of HBsAg among study participants were 16(4.7%) (95%CI=2.7,7.7)with a response rate of 100%. According to established criterion, the prevalence of HBsAg among pregnant women in this study area can be classified as an intermediate category(5).
This finding is in line with different studies were done with a proportion of 5.3% in Debre Tabor general hospital(6), 5.5% in Tigray(7), 3% St. Paul’s millennium medical college and Selam health center(8), 3.7% in Jimma (9), 6.9% in Deder hospital, eastern Ethiopia.(10), 7.3% in Gondar health center (11),and 4.9% in Dessie Referral hospital(12).This might be due to the sampling method, risky socio cultural and risky behavioral practice and methods used to screen HBsAg infection were the same.
But, relatively it is higher than 2.5% of prevalence which were reported from three public hospitals in Addis Ababa(13). This difference might be due to risky socio cultural and behavioral practices were low. However, it is lower than the study conducted in Hawassa referral hospital 7.8%(14).This difference might be due to the methods used to screen highly sensitive and specific and risky socio cultural and behavioral practiced were high.
However, higher results were reported in Mali 8%(15), Yemen 10.8%(16),Uganda 11.8% (17), Nigeria 12%(18) and Kenya 14.1(19). This variation might be due to differences in sampling method, geographical variation, cultural and behavioral differences regarding possible risk factors of HBV infection, and differences in the test methods employed to detect HBV infection.
Whereas, lower prevalence 0.14% to 0.97%, 0.9%, 1%, 1.5% ,1.6%and 2.1% were reported in USA(20), Brazil (21), Kenya (22), Libya (3),Saudi Arabia(23) and North Turkey(15), respectively. This variation may be due to in developed nations, where regular screening and vaccination for HBV were performed.
Having history of tonsillectomy (traditional surgical procedure) was an independent risk factor associated with HBV. This study finding is similar with the study done in different places of Ethiopia Deder(10), Dessie(12) and Nigeria(18). This finding may be explained as this surgical procedure is performed via traditional manner where no sterilization technique used. Therefore, the virus is easily transmitted from the career to the healthy mother.
In this study having a history of blood transfusion was an independent risk factor for Hepatitis B virus infection. The finding of this study is similar with the study done in Tanzania (25), Debre Markos, Northeast Ethiopia (24). This is explained as due to the fact that hepatitis B virus is transmitted through any fluid/mucosal/blood contact from infected patients easily.
Women who had history of multiple sexual partners have high chance to be infected by hepatitis B virus infection than the counter parts. This study finding is consistent with the study done in Northern Ethiopia (6), Deder(10),and Nigeria(12). This finding may be explained as since hepatitis virus is blood born virus; blood, semen and other body fluids are primary source of infection that sexual contacts provide as mode of transmission.