AMNIOCENTESIS IN MOTHERS WHO ARE HEPATITIS-B VIRUS CARRIERS DOES NOT EXPOSE THE INFANT TO AN INCREASED RISK OF HEPATITIS-B VIRUS-INFECTION

Sixty-seven pairs of mothers with hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface anti gen (HBsAg) and their infants were divided into two study groups to de termine the effect of amniocentesis on intrauterine HBV infection. In the first study group (35 pairs), the infant's HBsAg status in cord bl ood was studied and the results were compared with those obtained in t he cord blood from 65 infants born to HBsAg-positive women who did not have an amniocentesis. In the second study group (32 pairs), the HBV status of the infants was studied at the age of three months to five y ears and compared with the HBV status of 3,454 infants in the National HBV Prevention Program. In the first study group, one sample (2.9%) w as weakly positive for HBsAg; while in the first control group, two (3 .1%) were positive. In the second study group, three (10%) infants wer e positive for HBsAg. The failure rates of immunoprophylaxis in the se cond study and control groups were similar (9.4% vs 11% for HBsAg carr ier mothers; 30% vs 14% for HBe antigen-positive carrier mothers). Thi s suggested that genetic amniocentesis did not increase the risk of in trauterine HBV infection.