Possible transmission of hepatitis B virus between spouses and their children in Babol, Northern Iran.

To determine the possible routes of transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection between spouses and their children in Babol, Northern Iran, the spouses of 54 infected husbands and 49 wives without any evidence of HBV infection in their family members were evaluated from March 1998 to April 2005. All of these cases were hepatitis B surface antigen and anti-hepatitis B 'e' antigen positive. Mean duration of marriage for husbands was 14.4+/-6.49 and for wives 12.46+/-6.24 years. Past HBV infection was found in 46.3% wives of infected husbands and in 65.3% husbands of infected wives (P = 0.074). HBV markers were seen in 32.5% children of infected fathers and 64.5% children of infected mothers (P = 0.0001). HBV carrier rates in boys and girls of infected mothers were significantly higher than in those of infected fathers (P = 0.002 and P = 0.0001, respectively). The results show that transmission of HBV between spouses and their children were the main routes of transmission of HBV in our region.