Hepatitis B Surveillance 2022
What is hepatitis B?
Hepatitis B is a vaccine-preventable disease caused by infection of the liver with the hepatitis B virus (HBV). HBV is transmitted when blood, semen, or another body fluid from a person infected with the virus enters the body of someone who is uninfected.
This can happen through sexual contact; sharing needles, syringes, or other drug-injection equipment; or from the gestational parent to baby during pregnancy or at birth.
For some persons, hepatitis B is an acute, or short-term, illness; for others, it can become a long-term, chronic infection. Chronic hepatitis B can lead to serious health problems, including cirrhosis, liver cancer, and death.
Treatments are available, but no cure exists for hepatitis B. The best way to prevent hepatitis B is by being vaccinated.
Acute hepatitis B
2,126
There were 2,126 new cases of acute hepatitis B reported during 2022
13,800
There were 13,800 estimated acute HBV infections during 2022
Chronic hepatitis B
16,729
There were 16,729 cases of newly reported chronic hepatitis B during 2022
1,797
There were 1,797 hepatitis B-related deaths reported during 2022
Acute hepatitis B
During 2022, 47 states and the District of Columbia reported 2,126 acute hepatitis B cases, resulting in an estimated 13,800 infections. After a decade of stable rates, the rate of acute hepatitis B decreased in 2020 and remained stable in 2021 and 2022. Although changes in health care-seeking behavior and testing during the COVID-19 pandemic could have affected recent trends, the stability of the rate through 2022 suggests some reduction in HBV transmission, which may be unrelated to disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hepatitis B prevention
Hepatitis B vaccination prevents hepatitis B. To further decrease hepatitis B incidence, CDC published the 2022 universal hepatitis B adult vaccination recommendation calling for all people aged 19–59 years to receive hepatitis B vaccine whether they have risk factors or not. In addition, CDC updated hepatitis B screening recommendations, advising hepatitis B screening for all adults at least once in their lifetime.
Fast facts about acute hepatitis B in 2022
The rate of acute hepatitis B was 0.6 reported cases per 100,000 people, remaining stable during 2021–2022
52% of all acute hepatitis B cases were persons aged 40–59 years
14 jurisdictions had rates of acute hepatitis B higher than the United States average
The rate of acute hepatitis B among non-Hispanic Black persons was 1.7 times as high as the rate among non-Hispanic White persons
Chronic hepatitis B
During 2022, 16,729 cases of chronic hepatitis B were newly reported by 43 states and the District of Columbia, corresponding to a rate of 5.8 cases per 100,000 people.
The rate of newly reported chronic hepatitis B cases among non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander (A/PI) persons (20.1 cases per 100,000 population) was 11.2 times as high as the rate among non-Hispanic White persons (1.8 cases per 100,000 population).
Fast facts about chronic hepatitis B in 2022
In 2022, the rate of newly reported chronic hepatitis B cases among non-Hispanic A/PI persons was 11.2 times as high as among non-Hispanic White persons
89% of newly reported chronic hepatitis B cases occurred in persons 30 years and older
Although the rate of reported acute hepatitis B was the lowest among non-Hispanic A/PI persons, the rate of newly reported chronic hepatitis B was highest among this group.
- Figure 2.1. Number of reported cases and estimated infections of acute hepatitis B — United States, 2015–2022
- Figure 2.2. Rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2021–2022
- Figure 2.3. Rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2022
- Figure 2.4. Rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by age group — United States, 2007–2022
- Figure 2.5. Rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by sex — United States, 2007–2022
- Figure 2.6. Rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by race/ethnicity — United States, 2007–2022
- Figure 2.7. Availability of information on risk behaviors or exposures associated with reported cases of acute hepatitis B — United States, 2022
- Figure 2.8. Rates of deaths with hepatitis B listed as a cause of death among residents, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2022
- Table 2.1. Numbers and rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2018–2022
- Table 2.2. Numbers and rates of reported cases of acute hepatitis B, by demographic characteristics — United States, 2018–2022
- Table 2.3. Reported risk behaviors or exposures among reported cases of acute hepatitis B — United States, 2022
- Table 2.4. Number of newly reported cases of perinatal hepatitis B, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2022
- Table 2.5. Number and rate of newly reported cases of chronic hepatitis B, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2022
- Table 2.6. Number and rate of newly reported cases of chronic hepatitis B, by demographic characteristics — United States, 2022
- Table 2.7. Numbers and rates of deaths with hepatitis B listed as a cause of death among residents, by state or jurisdiction — United States, 2018–2022
- Table 2.8. Numbers and rates of deaths with hepatitis B listed as a cause of death among residents, by demographic characteristics — United States, 2018–2022