Prevention of mother-to-infant transmission of hepatitis B: advances and challenges

The prevention of mother-to-infant transmission (MTIT) of hepatitis B virus (HBV) plays a critical role in controlling chronic HBV infection. China has put tremendous efforts in preventing MTIT of HBV and now has achieved fruitful results. We briefly introduced the main measures and research advances in immunoprophylaxis against perinatal HBV infection, summarized the efficacy and safety of oral anti-HBV agents, which administered in the third trimester to the gravidas with high viral loads to prevent MTIT of HBV. We also proposed some challenging issues that require further investigation. Key words: Hepatitis B; Infectious disease transmission, vertical; Communicable disease control