Passport Health logo
Vaccinations|Find a Travel Clinic|Advice
  • Home
    • About
        • Company History
        • Careers
        • Executive Team
        • Contact Us
        • Customer Feedback
        • FAQ
        • Mission Statement
        • Privacy Policy
        • Blog
    • Close
  • Destination Advice
    • Top Destinations
        • Brazil
        • China
        • Costa Rica
        • India
        • Kenya
        • Peru
        • Philippines
        • South Africa
        • Thailand
        • Vietnam
    • Destination Advice
        • Tips and recommendations for healthy travel to any destination:

          • Afghanistan
          • Albania
          • Algeria
          • American Samoa
          • Andorra
          • Angola
          • Anguilla
          • Antarctica
          • Antigua and Barbuda
          • Argentina
          • Armenia
          • Aruba
          • Australia
          • Austria
          • Azerbaijan
          • Azores
          • Bahamas
          • Bahrain
          • Balearics
          • Bangladesh
          • Barbados
          • Belarus
          • Belgium
          • Belize
          • Benin
          • Bhutan
          • Bolivia
          • Bonaire
          • Bora Bora
          • Bosnia
          • Botswana
          • Brazil
          • British Virgin Islands
          • Brunei
          • Bulgaria
          • Burkina Faso
          • Burma
          • Burundi
          • Cambodia
          • Cameroon
          • Canada
          • Canary Islands
          • Cape Verde
          • Cayman Islands
          • Central African Republic
          • Chad
          • Chile
          • China
          • Christmas Island
          • Cocos (Keeling) Islands
          • Colombia
          • Comoros
          • Cook Islands
          • Costa Rica
          • Cote d'Ivoire
          • Croatia
          • Cuba
          • Curacao
          • Cyprus
          • Czechia
          • Democratic Republic of the Congo
          • Denmark
          • Djibouti
          • Dominica
          • Dominican Republic
          • East Timor
          • Easter Island
          • Ecuador
          • Egypt
          • El Salvador
          • Equatorial Guinea
          • Eritrea
          • Estonia
          • Ethiopia
          • Falkland Islands
          • Faroe Islands
          • Fiji
          • Finland
          • France
          • French Guiana
          • French Polynesia
          • Gabon
          • Gambia
          • Georgia
          • Germany
          • Ghana
          • Gibraltar
          • Greece
          • Greenland
          • Grenada
          • Guadeloupe
          • Guam
          • Guatemala
          • Guinea-Bissau
          • Guinea
          • Guyana
          • Haiti
          • Hawaii
          • Honduras
          • Hong Kong
          • Hungary
          • Ibiza
          • Iceland
          • India
          • Indonesia
          • Iran
          • Iraq
          • Ireland
          • Israel
          • Italy
          • Jamaica
          • Japan
          • Jordan
          • Kazakhstan
          • Kenya
          • Kiribati
          • Kosovo
          • Kuwait
          • Kyrgyzstan
          • Laos
          • Latvia
          • Lebanon
          • Lesotho
          • Liberia
          • Libya
          • Liechtenstein
          • Lithuania
          • Luxembourg
          • Macau
          • Macedonia
          • Madagascar
          • Madeira Islands
          • Malawi
          • Malaysia
          • Maldives
          • Mali
          • Malta
          • Marshall Islands
          • Martinique
          • Mauritania
          • Mauritius
          • Mayotte
          • Mexico
          • Micronesia
          • Moldova
          • Monaco
          • Mongolia
          • Montenegro
          • Montserrat
          • Morocco
          • Mozambique
          • Namibia
          • Nauru
          • Nepal
          • Netherlands
          • New Caledonia
          • New Zealand
          • Nicaragua
          • Niger
          • Nigeria
          • Niue
          • Norfolk Island
          • North Korea
          • Northern Mariana Islands
          • Norway
          • Oman
          • Pakistan
          • Palau
          • Palestinian Territories
          • Panama
          • Papua New Guinea
          • Paraguay
          • Peru
          • Philippines
          • Pitcairn Islands
          • Poland
          • Portugal
          • Puerto Rico
          • Qatar
          • Republic of the Congo
          • RĂ©union
          • Romania
          • Russia
          • Rwanda
          • Saba
          • St. Barthelemy
          • Saint Helena
          • St. Kitts and Nevis
          • St. Lucia
          • Saint Martin
          • St. Pierre-et-Miquelon
          • St. Vincent and the Grenadines
          • Samoa
          • San Marino
          • Sao Tome and Principe
          • Saudi Arabia
          • Senegal
          • Serbia
          • Seychelles
          • Sierra Leone
          • Singapore
          • Sint Eustatius
          • Slovakia
          • Slovenia
          • Solomon Islands
          • Somalia
          • South Africa
          • South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
          • South Korea
          • South Sudan
          • Spain
          • Sri Lanka
          • Sudan
          • Suriname
          • Swaziland
          • Sweden
          • Switzerland
          • Syria
          • Tahiti
          • Taiwan
          • Tajikistan
          • Tanzania
          • Thailand
          • Togo
          • Tokelau
          • Tonga
          • Trinidad and Tobago
          • Tunisia
          • Turkey
          • Turkmenistan
          • Turks and Caicos Islands
          • Tuvalu
          • U.S. Virgin Islands
          • Uganda
          • Ukraine
          • United Arab Emirates
          • United Kingdom
          • United States
          • Uruguay
          • Uzbekistan
          • Vanuatu
          • Vatican
          • Venezuela
          • Vietnam
          • Wake Island
          • Western Sahara
          • Yemen
          • Zambia
          • Zimbabwe
    • Close
  • Travel Medicine
    • Travel Medical Services
        • Vaccines for Travel
        • Travel Health Consulting
        • Travellers’ Diarrhea Kits
        • Dengue Fever Prevention
        • Malaria Medication
        • Chikungunya Prevention
        • Zika Virus Prevention
        • Ebola Virus
        • Coronavirus
        • Travel Health Alerts
    • Additional Travel Services
      • Physician Referral Program
    • Close
  • Vaccinations
    • Overview
        • Chickenpox
        • Cholera (Dukoral)
        • Hepatitis A
        • Hepatitis B
        • Hep A/Typhoid Combo (Vivaxim)
        • Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
        • Japanese Encephalitis
        • Malaria Information
        • Measles – Mumps – Rubella (MMR)
        • Meningitis
        • Pneumonia
        • Polio
        • Rabies
        • Shingles
        • Tetanus-Diphtheria-Pertussis
        • Typhoid
        • Yellow Fever
        • Drug Identification Numbers (DIN)
    • Influenza (The Flu)
        • Learn more about your flu vaccine options
          • For most individuals
          • For seniors over 65 years
    • Routine Tests
      • TB Tests
      • Routine Vaccinations
        • Overview
    • Close
  • Employer Solutions
    • Overview
      • Travel Medicine & Vaccinations
      • Onsite Flu Clinics
      • Retirement Community Flu Program
      • Onsite Vaccination Clinics
      • Biometric Screenings
      • Vaccine Credentialing
    • Close
  • Locations
        • Ontario

          Barrie Travel Clinic

          Brampton Travel Clinic

          Carlington - Ottawa Travel Clinic

          Etobicoke Travel Clinic

          Kitchener Travel Clinic

          London Travel Clinic

          Markham Travel Clinic

          Mississauga Travel Clinic

          Oakville Travel Clinic

          Richmond Hill Travel Clinic

          St. Catharines Travel Clinic

          Toronto Travel Clinic

          Whitby Travel Clinic

          Yorkville Travel Clinic

        • Alberta

          Chinook - Calgary Travel Clinic

          Downtown Calgary Travel Clinic

          Downtown Edmonton Travel Clinic

        • British Columbia

          Burnaby Travel Clinic

          Downtown Vancouver Travel Clinic

          North Vancouver Travel Clinic

          Surrey Travel Clinic

        • Quebec

          Downtown Montreal Travel Clinic

          Laval Travel Clinic

          Québec City Travel Clinic

          Westmount Travel Clinic

    • Close

Where Did Hepatitis B Come From?

August 15, 2018 By Caitlin Hartwyk

We may have tracked the origin of two separate hepatitis B genotypes.

Hepatitis A may be causing outbreaks in the United States, but hepatitis B is still endemic to most regions of the world. The vaccine for the disease is even suggested before traveling to any foreign destination.

As a disease that’s found all around the world, many scientists have wondered where hepatitis B came from.

In 2018, that source is still a topic for debit in the world of science.

In 2013, hepatitis B was thought to have originated in birds. Then in 2015, fish were thought to be a source. Throughout all these studies, it was clear that the virus is a prehistoric disease that was around at least 82 million years ago.

Today, scientists have finally mapped out the virus and its dissemination pattern, starting from that date 82 million years ago. The study determined that strands of hepatitis B started in North Africa and the Middle East. The virus then spread to the rest of the world.

According to the WHO, approximately 257 million people in the world are currently living with the hepatitis B infection. Each year, approximately 620,000 people die from the disease. The risk for hepatitis B remains the highest in Africa and the Western Pacific.

Hepatitis B transmits through bodily fluids. The most frequent reason for its spread is infected blood or semen.

Depending on the individual, hepatitis B can be short-lived (Acute) or become a long-term infection (Chronic). The infection can affect the liver, leading to far more serious problems like liver cancer and cirrhosis.

According to a study from early August that was published in eLife, scientists have mapped out where the virus spreads from. Again, because this virus has been around for at least 82 million years, this is quite a feat.

Each bit of information about hepatitis B and it’s history provides a better idea of where it originated.

There are nine different genotypes of hepatitis B (HBV). The new study confirmed that the genotypes HBV-D and HBV-A originated in the Middle East and North Africa. Although the study didn’t confirm this, scientists estimate that hepatitis B-A came from somewhere in the Middle East and Central Asia.

Information like this can prove key in tracking the source of a virus. If we know where it started, we can also track how all the different genotypes traveled across the globe.

The spread of these different hepatitis B genotypes was caused and affected by migration patterns in history. This new information give us a much more accurate map for the virus. Depending on where each genotype started in the world, each version of hepatitis B varied greatly.

Are you in need of the hepatitis B vaccine for an upcoming trip? Passport Health can help! Give us a call at or book an appointment online.

Did you know that the history of hepatitis B was such a mystery? Let us know in the comments, or via Facebook and Twitter.

Written for Passport Health by Kaitlyn Luckow. Kaitlyn is a freelance writer, photographer and English teacher in Milwaukee. She has a passion for capturing and writing other people’s stories. You can find her at sayhellostory.com.

Filed Under: General Posts

About Us

Passport Health's blog provides travelers and travel enthusiasts with a variety of news and features. We focus on bringing the most interesting and relevant stories right to our readers. Topics range from the vaccines needed for a destination to updates on recent outbreaks, travel advice and much more. Feel free to check out some of our most popular posts, linked in the sidebar, or our most recent posts below
Stay Updated! Sign up to receive email updates from our blog.

Recent Blog Posts

  • How Does Measles Spread? A New Study Gives Answers
  • The Necessary and Unfortunate Identity of “Patient Zero”
  • What Was The Plague of Justinian? How A Single Outbreak Killed 10% Of The World’s Population.
  • Tips To Stay Safe While Traveling Alone

Blog Archives

  • About Us
  • Clinical Trials
  • Contact Us
  • PIPEDA Policy and Consent Form
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Sitemap
Schedule Your Appointment:
Questions? Please call or E-mail Us

Connect With Us:

Passport Health Canada on Facebook
Passport Health on Twitter
Passport Health on YouTube
Passport Health on Instagram
Passport Health on Linked In
Passport Health Feed

Passport Health is an Outlier business Passport Health es una empresa que pertenece al grupo OutlierPassport Health est une entreprise du groupe Outlier Copyright © 2021

This website or its third-party tools use cookies to improve functionality and performance. By continuing to browse this site, you are consenting to the use of cookies illustrated in our cookie policy.Accept