Characteristics of Participants
A total of 16,569 participants were included in the study, with 50.09%
(95%CI: 49.08%-51.1%) being men and 49.91% (95%CI: 48.9%-50.92%)
being women, and an average age of 42.76 ± 14.57 years. Table 1summarizes all characteristics of the study stratified by HBV infection
(yes or no). The prevalence of HBV infection (including previous or
present infection) among US adults was approximately 4.04% (95%CI:
3.72%-4.38%). The majority of outcomes exhibited statistically
significant differences when stratified by HBV infection. Participants
with HBV infection were more likely to be 40-69 years predominant, men,
non-Hispanic Black, with education less than high school, with a poverty
income ratio (PIR) <1.3. Additionally, these individuals were
more likely to have co-infections with HIV or HCV, engage in drug use or
current smoking, identify as homosexual or bisexual, and exhibit
elevated levels of ALT, AST, and GGT. The study found that while no
statistically significant difference was observed in sexual behavior
(yes or no) among individuals with HBV infection, statistically
significant differences were observed in sexual identity and sexual
type.
Furthermore, the characteristics of participants were compared and
stratified by sexual identity, as presented in Table 5 . The
results indicated that the rates of HIV and HCV infection were
significantly higher among homosexual and bisexual individuals compared
to those without sexual behavior.