Background:
Immigrants constituted 16% of the Canadian population but incurred 37% of HBV-related hospitalizations. Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has a high burden of HBV (60 million) but is not well described.

Purpose:
To describe the demographic features of HBV-infected Canadian immigrants from SSA.

Methods:
Retrospective analysis of HBV-infected SSA immigrants seen at The Ottawa Hospital Viral Hepatitis Program (Jan 2014 to June 2022). Demographics, risk factors and lab data were evaluated.

Result:
Genotypes included: A=40, E=48. Most HBV/A came from Central and Eastern Africa and most HBV/E from Western Africa. HBV/A were older (43.8 yrs) than HBV/E (38.1 yrs). 51.1% were male. 6.9% were HBeAg positive and 94.2% had F0-1 fibrosis. 71.0% were employed and 95.8% had stable housing. Risk factors included piercings (30.7%), maternal HBV carrier (17.4%), recreational drug use (6.8%)& tattoos (2.3%). Only 1.1% reported excess alcohol use. 15.9% initiated HBV antivirals.

Conclusion:
HBV/A and E patients from SSA were generally healthy. HBV/A was associated with older age and immigration from Central/Eastern Africa and most HBV/E patients were from Western Africa. This analysis may help guide elimination efforts.