USPSTF Updates Hep B Screening Recommendations

The USPSTF has reaffirmed its recommendation that pregnant women should be screened for hepatitis B virus (HBV) at their first prenatal visit (Grade A).

To update and reaffirm their 2009 recommendations, the group used a process created for well-established standards of practice “for which only a very high level of evidence would justify a change in the grade of the recommendation.”

They commissioned a targeted review to seek out new and substantial evidence on the benefits and harms of screening. However, they found no new substantial evidence that would change their 2009 recommendation.

“Using a reaffirmation process, the USPSTF concludes with high certainty that the net benefit of screening for HBV infection in pregnant women is substantial.”

—Michael Potts

Reference:

USPSTF. draft recommendation statement - hepatitis B virus infection in pregnant women: screening [published online Jnauary 9, 2019]. https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/Page/Document/draft-recommendation-statement/hepatitis-b-virus-infection-in-pregnant-women-screening.