HEPATITIS B KNOWLEDGE AMONG DIFFERENT ETHNIC GROUPS OF EXPATRIATE BLUE COLLAR WORKERS IN NORTHERN SAUDI ARABIA Dr. Abdul Sattar Khan, Dr. Maisa Al-Sweilem, Dr. Zekeriya Akturk Objective: To find out the level of knowledge and vaccination status among different ethnic groups of expatriate blue collar workers. Background: Infection with hepatitis B (HBV) is relatively common throughout the world (1), especially in underprivileged or low socioeconomic class, and chronic infection can lead to severe consequences including Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) (2). Methods: A cross-sectional community based survey of expatriates (n=665) was completed during We examined HBV knowledge and vaccination status among different ethnic groups of expatriate blue collar workers in Northern Saudi Arabia and compared their level of knowledge with some socio-demographic and acculturation factors. Results: The mean age of the participants was years (+8.44), out of those 53% were Asians and 47% Non-Asians (Figure 1). Off total, 41.6% responded 7 or more correct answer from 12 questions addressing knowledge about transmission and sequelae of HBV. Almost 40% of respondents were not vaccinated while remaining was having full three doses of vaccination (Figure 2). 42% had high knowledge regarding hepatitis B (Figure 3). High levels of knowledge about HBV (i.e., respondents who correctly answered at least 7 of the 12 questions about HBV) were significantly associated with higher level of education, occupation and immunization status (P 0.05) with income and type of accommodation (Table 1). However, vaccination status is significantly (P<0.005) associated to almost all socio-demographic factors (Table 2). References (1)Arya SC, Agarwal N, Ayoola AE. Hepatitis B viral infection in South west Saudi Arabia. Saudi Med J Mar; 25(3):390. (2)Chen CJ, Yu MW, Liaw YF. Epidemiological characteristics and risk factors of Hepatocellular carcinoma. J Grastroenterol Hepatol 1997; 12: S (3)Taylor VM, Jackson JC, Pineda M, Pham P, Fischer M, Yasui Y. Hepatitis B knowledge among Vietnamese immigrants: Implications for prevention of Hepatocellular carcinoma. J Cancer Educ 2000; 15: Ministry of Health, Center of Post Graduate Studies in Family Medicine, Saudi Arabia Turkish National Family Medicine Days – April 2007 Table 1: Hepatitis B knowledge in relation to Socio-demographic factors Table 2: Immunization status for Hepatitis B in relation to Socio-demographic factors Figure 2 Worldwide, the most important etiological factor associated with HCC is chronic infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV), which is responsible for about 80% of all cases of HCC. Discussion: Our results warranted that expatriates have a reasonably good immunization status, with less good knowledge about HBV infection. Moreover, socio-demogrphic and acculturation factors such as education, age, income, life spent in KSA, and marital status have some impact on the level of knowledge affecting directly or indirectly (3), might be considered while assessing the immunization status of especially those populations which comprised of a meager number of expatriate or immigrants like in Saudi Arabia. Conclusion: The difference in immunization rates between former and recent expatriates shows the success of screening programs. However, beyond screening, immunization campaigns and facilitation of access to immunization are necessary. The greatest success is likely to be achieved by health promotion activities that target less educated individuals. Figure 1 Figure 3 Prevention is better than cure!