Hepatitis B in pregnancy.

In the United States each year, 24,000 infants are born to women who are infected with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and an estimated 1000 newborns acquire the infection through vertical transmission from their mother. The approach to a pregnant patient with HBV infection includes assessing the need for therapy in the mother and evaluating possible interventions that may reduce mother-to-child transmission of HBV infection. Rates of mother-to-child transmission of HBV can be greatly reduced if the current guidelines for screening and immunization are universally followed.