Background: Although various studies have demonstrated efficacy of DNA-recombinant anti-hepatitis B vaccines, their effectiveness in health care settings has not been researched adequately. This gap is particularly visible for blood donors, a group of significant importance in the reduction of transfusion-transmitted hepatitis B.
Methods: This is a double cohort study of 1411 repeat blood donors during the period 1998-2002, involving a vaccinated and an unvaccinated cohort, with matching of the two in terms of sex, age and residence.