Treataware

Should positive people get booster hepatitis shots?

The simple answer is ‘no’- courtesy of Dr Brian Hughes, Infectious Diseases Physician and hepatitis specialist at John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle. Hepatitis A vaccine is highly immunogenic and works just as well for people with HIV. It doesn’t lose effectiveness over time so a booster is never needed. Hepatitis B (HBV) vaccination is different and a small proportion of all recipients don’t get an adequate antibody response to the vaccine. The lower your CD4 count, the more likely you will not get a response. Therefore, double dosing is initially recommended for people whose CD4 count is less than 350. Testing for a response is then recommended for those with significant immunosupression and if no response is recorded a further double dose can be given. If there is still no response then yearly testing for possible HBV infection is recommended.

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This information was retrieved from the Treataware website (www.treataware.info) on 20 Nov 2008. For further information, please consult the website or call the NAPWA office on 02 8568 0300.