Abstract
Introduction: healthcare workers (HCWs) are at an increased risk of occupational acquisition of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the seroprevalence and awareness of HBV infection among the HCWs in Abu-Salim Trauma Hospital, Tripoli, Libya. Methods: a cross-sectional study was carried out on 206 HCWs at Abu-Salim Trauma Hospital from February to March 2022. Serum samples were tested to detect HBsAg, HBcAb, HBeAb and HBsAb. A structured questionnaire was used to assess knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) and a cut-off of 75% was established to categorize KAP scores. Pearson´s chi-square test was used to evaluate the relationship between HBV marker rates and categorical variables, while KAP scores were assessed using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: the prevalence of HBsAg, HBsAb, HBcAb and HBeAb among 206 HCWs was 0%, 50.4%, 3.9%, and 2.9%, respectively. High rates of HBcAb and HBsAb were significantly associated with more than 5 years of professional experience (P= 0.002 and P= 0.0008, respectively). 50.4% of participants were immunized by previous vaccinations. The rates of scores for knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding HBV infection were 62.5%, 72.8%, and 84%, respectively. The mean scores for participants´ knowledge and attitudes concerning HBV infection were significantly associated with their gender, age groups, occupation, and educational level (P= 0.023, 0.045, 0.001, and 0.002) and (P= 0.002, 0.000, 0.000, and 0.000), respectively. Conclusion: the study showed a low prevalence of past HBV infection and about half of participants were unvaccinated. The mean scores for KAP assessment reflected insufficient knowledge, weakly positive attitude and good adherence to practices.