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.