The number of cases of hepatitis B rose by almost 10 per cent last year, although overall infection levels of the potentially fatal disease remain low.
Figures published by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) show the number of notifications of the infection rose from 487 in 2016 to 532 last year. The HPSC said, however, that the prevalence of hepatitis B in the general population in Ireland remained less than 1 per cent, which is similar to most other northern European countries.
“The vast majority of hepatitis B cases notified in Ireland are chronically infected, most of whom have migrated to Ireland from hepatitis B endemic countries,” the HPSC said.
It said that most cases occurred in defined risk groups, including people with multiple