What Families Should Know About Hepatitis B
Back-to-School Vaccine Breakdown: Protecting Your Child’s Health with the Hepatitis B Vaccine
Resources and tips for finding immunizations for children:
Navigating vaccines can feel overwhelming. Talk to your pediatrician.
- Schedule an appointment through Cook Children's.
- Find your nearest Texas Department of State Health service clinic for information on clinics.
- Call 211 for help.
- Call Tarrant County Public Health at 817-248-6299 to make an appointment or to find a walk-in clinic.
- Check with your local school district for vaccine events.
Raising a child brings up endless questions, especially when it comes to their health and well-being. As back-to-school season approaches, immunizations may be top of mind for families, and searching for clear, honest answers about what goes into their child's body and why. With so much conflicting information online, sorting facts from fear can feel overwhelming. Cook Children’s Health Care System helps parents and caregivers cut through the noise with trusted guidance from medical experts who are parents themselves.
Among the required school shots, the Hepatitis B vaccine often raises the most questions, especially when it comes to why infants and young kids need protection so early.
Hospitalist Laura Romano, D.O., explains the key facts about hepatitis B and the vaccine that prevents it.
What is Hepatitis B?
Hepatitis B is a serious liver disease that is caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV).
In adults, hepatitis B is usually spread through blood or intimate contact. In young children, however, the virus usually spreads through contact with infected bodily fluids. Transmission most commonly occurs during labor and delivery, but it can also happen through everyday activities, such as sharing a toothbrush or being bitten by a person who has the virus.
People infected with hepatitis B can spread the virus even if they show no symptoms. In fact, children often remain asymptomatic for years while still being contagious. This is especially concerning because infants and young children are more likely than adults to develop chronic, lifelong liver conditions, including permanent liver damage, cirrhosis (severe scarring), and liver cancer.
Treatment options for chronic hepatitis B are limited and focus primarily on halting the progression of liver damage rather than curing the virus itself. For severe cases where the liver has sustained significant damage, a liver transplant may ultimately be necessary.
How can the disease be prevented?
The most effective way to prevent hepatitis B is through vaccination. The vaccine is highly protective, offering about 95% effectiveness in preventing both acute and chronic infections. Since its routine inclusion in infant immunization schedules, rates of hepatitis B cases and associated liver cancer have steadily declined.
What would you like families to know about the hepatitis B vaccine and HBV?
- Hepatitis B is often misunderstood as a disease that only affects people engaging in high-risk or illegal behaviors. Anyone can contract the virus through everyday actions such as sharing a razor or toothbrush with someone who has the infection, even if that person shows no symptoms.
- Prenatal screening and maternal immunity testing alone are not enough to protect all children from hepatitis B. History has shown that targeting only 'high-risk' infants leaves gaps, leading to ongoing infections in both mothers and children that universal vaccination prevents.
- While some countries delay hepatitis B vaccination until children are older, their social and health care infrastructure differs significantly. Longer parental leave in those countries means children spend less time in daycare, where early exposure can occur. Also, universal health care access allows these countries to detect acute infections quickly and manage chronic cases more effectively.
