Risk factors of hepatitis B infection: Health policy makers should be aware of their importance in each community

Despite the availability of an effective vaccine, Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection still remains a foremost health problem. Undoubtedly, finding the key routes of hepatitis transmission from the point of prevention in every country, specifically in endemic regions, is of high priority. Such efforts are especially important given that many infected patients with hepatitis are asymptomatic (1, 2). Iran and Turkey are located in the Middle East, and HBV prevalence varies from intermediate to high in most countries in this region. In most countries across the world, the epidemiology of HBV infection has changed after the integration of HBV vaccination in infants and high-risk groups (3-6).