Prevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen and antibody in white and black patients with diabetes mellitus.

The prevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBSAg) and antibody (anti-HBS) was determined in 531 white and 519 black diabetic outpatients and in appropriate white and black control populations. There was no difference between the prevalence of either HBSAg or anti-HBS in either the white or black diabetics and that in the white and black controls. These findings make it unlikely that the vast majority of patients with diabetes mellitus have either an increased susceptibility to infection by the hepatitis B virus or an impaired ability to clear the virus once they are infected.