Background: The development of a vaccine against hepatitis B virus (HBV)\nhas been a major achievement in terms of prevention of HBV infection. To\nevaluate the immunological status against HBV of dental-profession students,\nwe analysed the long-term immunogenicity and effectiveness of HBV vaccination\nin Italian dental students with different work seniorities, determining\nthe influence of epidemiological variables on the immune response. Methods:\nThis study, carried out from January 2014 to April 2016, involved 361 underand\npost-graduate dental students attending the Second University of Naples.\nHBV serum markers were determined and multivariate logistic regression\nanalysis was used to identify factors associated with the level of long-term\nimmunogenicity. Results: Of the 361 subjects evaluated, 15 (4.2%) declared\nno history of vaccination. All vaccinated subjects were HBsAg/anti-HBc negative,\nwith 86 (24.9%) having an anti-HBs titre <10 IU/L. The latter were\nyounger, more likely to be attending undergraduate dental school, and more\nlikely to have been vaccinated in infancy. Conclusion: The findings of this\nstudy suggest that assessment of HBV serum markers in workers potentially\nexposed to hospital infections is useful to identify small numbers of unvaccinated\nsubjects or vaccinated subjects with low antibody titre, all of whom\nshould be referred for a booster series of vaccinations.
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