Responsiveness of children with celiac disease to different hepatitis B vaccination protocols

We aimed to compare the response rates to hepatitis B virus vaccination in the first year of life, using two different immunization protocols, in children with celiac disease. Study Group 1 included patients with celiac disease who received 10 μg of hepatitis B vaccine intramuscularly at birth (0), 2 and 9-12 months of life. Group 2 included those who received hepatitis B vaccine at 0, 1 and 6 months of life. Healthy children were divided into two control groups according to the above schedules. The total study group included 64 patients and 49 healthy controls. Celiac patients were found to have lower response rates with respect to controls (78.1% vs. 95.9%, respectively). The difference in response rates in the two patient groups was not statistically significant. The response rates of celiac patients to the two different hepatitis B vaccination schedules showed no statistically significant difference.