Potential Risk of Respiratory Secretions in the Transmission of HBV Infection: A Review of the Literature

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a significant health problem around the world and may cause serious morbidity and mortality. The most common transmission routes are parenteral, sexual, perinatal and horizontal way. Identification of the risk factors for viral hepatitis transmission is the main rule to reduce the spread of this infection. The aim of this study was to review the possible occupational risk factors for nanparenteral transmission of Hepatitis B virus for health care workers, especially for otorhinolaryngologists. The Medline / PubMed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane databases were searched by using different combinations of MeSH terms for HBV, transmission routes, and risk factors. The results were collected from articles published between January 2000 and July 2015. There were no language restriction during searching the data, whether the abstracts of the studies contain sufficient data were analysed. All searchable relevant data was evaluated and reviewed. The presence of viral particles, including HBsAg and / or HBV DNA in body secretions such as saliva, tears and cerumen may suggest the possibility of horizontal transmission of HBV infection. Therefore, the healthcare workers, particularly otorhinolaryngologists, ophthalmologists or other surgeons, audiologists, dentists, pulmonologists, intensive care specialists and nurses should pay special attention while applying the standard infection control precautions in order to prevent HBV infection in themselves and their patients.