Labor and Delivery
For specific information about how to manage pregnant women with
hepatitis B, read 
Labor
& Delivery Unit and Nursery Unit Guidelines to Prevent Hepatitis
B Virus Transmission, which is published by the Immunization
Action Coalition in collaboration with the CDC.
Print the 
PDF
version of these important guidelines to use as a handy office
reference.
For more information, read the following article (April 2012)
Chronic Hepatitis B in Pregnancy: Screening, Evaluation and Management (Part I)
Published in The Female Patient, April 2012 (vol. 37): pages 22-27
Most OB care providers screen pregnant women for hepatitis B infection, and advise that newborns of infected mothers be given hepatitis B immune globulin and the first dose of the hepatitis B vaccine within 12 hours after birth to prevent developing a chronic infection. However, a significant percentage of care providers may not refer hepatitis B-infected women to a specialist or primary care provider for management of their chronic hepatitis B infection, eitherduring pregnancy or postpartum.
