Hepatitis B virus testing and linkage to care in a Canadian urban tertiary referral centre: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Despite universal vaccination, chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains a public health concern in North America owing to immigration. We aimed to characterize the number of people with a positive result of testing for HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) in Calgary, a large urban Canadian health care region, and to assess whether recommended laboratory tests and specialist consultation were done for those identified as HBsAg-positive.

Methods: Based on laboratory and Alberta Health Services administrative data, we identified all adults (age > 18 yr) with a positive HBsAg test result from Jan.