Background: Adult patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) have a greater risk of contracting hepatitis B virus (HBV) than the general population, including those ≥ 60 years of age. When infected, patients with DM have more severe HBV-related morbidity and accelerated progression. The CDC recommends HBV vaccination of all adults with DM who are ≥ 60 years of age at the discretion of the treating physician. Due to persistent challenges, including hyporesponsiveness with current 3-dose vaccines, 87% of individuals with DM who are ≥ 60 years of age remain unvaccinated. HBsAg-1018 (Heplisav-BTM) is a 2-dose HBV vaccine with demonstrated higher protection rates than a 3-dose vaccine, particularly in populations known to be hyporesponsive. In this post-hoc analysis of a phase 3 trial, we assessed the safety and efficacy of HBsAg-1018 in patients with type 2 DM (T2DM) who were ≥ 60 years of age.

Methods: Patients with T2DM and who were 60-70 years old received either 2-dose HBsAg-1018 at 0 and 4 weeks and placebo at 24 weeks or 3-dose HBsAg-Eng (Engerix-B®) at 0, 4, and 24 weeks. Peak (week 24, HBsAg-1018 vs. week 28, HBsAg-Eng) seroprotection rates (SPRs) and safety were assessed by subgroups (sex, body mass index [BMI], and smoking status).

Results: A total of 480 patients (HBsAg-1018, n=327; HBsAg-Eng, n=153) were included in this analysis. Among patients who received all study injections, the peak SPR was significantly higher with HBsAg-1018 at week 24 (88.2% [231/262]) than with HBsAg-Eng at week 28, giving an overall difference of 29.7% (95% CI: 20.5, 39.1; P<.0001). SPRs with HBsAg-1018 were significantly higher compared with HBsAg-Eng regardless of sex, BMI, or smoking status (P ≤ .01). Adverse events, serious adverse events, and deaths were comparable between HBsAg-1018 and HBsAg-Eng.

Conclusion: Two-dose HBsAg-1018 provides better protection against HBV than a 3-dose vaccine (HBsAg-Eng) with a similar safety profile in patients ≥ 60 years of age with T2DM regardless of subgroup.

Disclosure

R.N. Hyer: Employee; Self; Dynavax Technologies. R.S. Janssen: Employee; Self; Dynavax Technologies.

© 2018 by the American Diabetes Association.
2018
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