Epidemiology of hepatitis B virus infection in Albania.

Aim: To assess the prevalence and socio-demographic distribution of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in Albania.

Methods: Blood samples from 410 unselected schoolboys, 666 students, 500 military personnel, 1286 casual blood donors, 378 voluntary blood donors and 640 pregnant women (total 3880 non-vaccinated residents of rural and metropolitan areas from all over Albania; 2354 (60.7%) male and 1526 (39.