[Course of acute hepatitis B in children]

This study presents the course of acute hepatitis B in 77 children. It has been recorded that the course of HBV infections in children is most often mild, and in children younger than 2 years of age it is usually inapparent. The most frequent markers of the infection are antigens HBs and HBe. ALAT in all children normalized 2 months at the longest, after the hospitalization had ended. The most considerable danger of carrier-state exists in children not older than 2 years of age; an increased danger of becoming a carrier exists during the time of pubescence. The main cause of HBV infections is hospital stay. There emerges a necessity of routine marking the HBs antigen in hospitalized children.