Background: Nigeria commenced her hepatitis B immunization programme in 2004 but there have been few evaluations of
the programme in different parts of the country given the fact that prevalence in different regions of the country varies. The
objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of HBsAg and the hepatitis B immunization status among children
admitted to the children’s emergency room (CHER) in Benin Teaching Hospital.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study carried out in 150 consecutively recruited children aged 2 months to 15 years
admitted to the CHER of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital. HBsAg was assayed for in blood.
Results: HBsAg seroprevalence was 13.9%. Majority (83%) of the children were age appropriately immunized for hepatitis
B. Mean age at receipt of the birth dose of hepatitis B (28.0±20.4 days) was significantly delayed (p<0.0001). Mean age
at completion of the schedule(110±18.6 days) was significantly delayed compared to the recommended age of 98 days
p<0.0002). Age, sex and socioeconomic status were not significantly associated with being seropositive(p>0,05).
Conclusion: HBsAg seroprevalence was high despite high immunization coverage. Lack of timeliness in the receipt of the
birth dose and in completion of the schedule may have contributed to the seeming lack of effectiveness of the immunization
programme,