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Q100 (IAS/2019) Science & Technology › Biotechnology & Health › Human infectious diseases Official Key

Which one of the following statements is not correct?

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: B
Explanation

The correct answer is option B because this statement is incorrect – it reverses the reality about hepatitis vaccines.

Hepatitis B infections can be prevented with the hepatitis B vaccine, while no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C has been licensed.[1] Therefore, the statement claiming "Hepatitis B, unlike Hepatitis C, does not have a vaccine" is factually wrong.

The other options are correct: Hepatitis B virus shares similar transmission routes with HIV, including[3] sexual contact and blood exposure[4]; globally, hepatitis B and C infections far outnumber HIV cases; and most people with chronic hepatitis B and C infections are asymptomatic or may not show symptoms[5] for many years.[6]

Since the question asks which statement is "not correct," option B is the answer as it contains false information about vaccine availability.

Sources
  1. [1] https://www.nationalacademies.org/read/12793/chapter/3
  2. [2] https://clinicalinfo.hiv.gov/en/guidelines/hiv-clinical-guidelines-adult-and-adolescent-opportunistic-infections/hepatitis-b-virus
  3. [3] https://www.hepb.org/what-is-hepatitis-b/hivaids-co-infection/
  4. [5] https://hivinfo.nih.gov/understanding-hiv/fact-sheets/hiv-and-hepatitis-b
  5. [6] https://clinicalinfo.hiv.gov/en/guidelines/hiv-clinical-guidelines-adult-and-adolescent-opportunistic-infections/hepatitis-b-virus
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Community Performance
Out of everyone who attempted this question.
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PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
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Q. Which one of the following statements is not correct? [A] Hepatitis B virus is transmitted much like HIV. [B] Hepatitis B, unlike Hepat…
At a glance
Origin: Mostly Current Affairs Fairness: Low / Borderline fairness Books / CA: 0/10 · 6/10
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This is a 'Sitter' disguised as a complex medical question. You did not need to know the global infection statistics (Option C). You only needed to know one basic fact from Mission Indradhanush: Hepatitis B vaccine exists and is widely administered in India. Option B contradicts this fundamental public health fact.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Are the transmission routes of Hepatitis B similar to those of HIV (including sexual contact, blood exposure, and perinatal transmission)?
Origin: Web / Current Affairs Fairness: CA heavy Web-answerable

Web source
Presence: 5/5
"Although the general modes of transmission are similar to those of HIV, HBV is transmitted more efficiently than HIV."
Why this source?
  • Explicitly states that HBV's general modes of transmission are similar to those of HIV.
  • Specifically notes perinatal transmission and compares efficiency of transmission to HIV, implying shared routes such as blood/sexual exposure.
Web source
Presence: 5/5
"both HIV and the hepatitis B virus share similar transmission routes... Both viruses can be transmitted from mother-to-baby during childbirth (due to blood exchange from mother to baby), through unsafe medical and injection practices, and unscreened blood transfusions. Sexual activity and/or injection drug use are other common routes of transmission"
Why this source?
  • Directly says both viruses share similar transmission routes and high coinfection frequency.
  • Lists specific shared routes: mother-to-baby during childbirth (perinatal), unsafe medical/injection practices and unscreened blood transfusions, sexual activity and injection drug use.
Web source
Presence: 5/5
"HIV and hepatitis B share common transmission routes, including condomless sexual contact and sharing drug use equipment."
Why this source?
  • States that HIV and hepatitis B share common transmission routes.
  • Specifies condomless sexual contact and sharing drug use equipment as shared routes of transmission.

Environment and Ecology, Majid Hussain (Access publishing 3rd ed.) > Chapter 8: Natural Hazards and Disaster Management > AIDs/HIVs > p. 81
Strength: 5/5
“defence against infection. It leads to afected person to a variety of other infectious diseases and certain malignancies that eventually cause death. AIDS is the fnal stage of HIV infection, during which time fatal infections and cancers arise. AIDS was frst reported in 1981 by investigators in New York and California (USA). HIV is transmitted by direct transfer of body fuids, such as blood and blood products, semen, and other genital secretions, or breast milk, from an infected person to an uninfected person. Te main cellular target of HIV is a class of white blood cells critical to the immune system known as helper T cells.”
Why relevant

Explicitly lists HIV transmission by blood/blood products, semen and genital secretions, and breast milk—giving a clear pattern of body‑fluid (blood/sexual/perinatal) routes for HIV.

How to extend

A student could compare these listed HIV fluid-based routes with authoritative facts about Hepatitis B (a virus also transmitted by blood and sexual contact and perinatally) to judge similarity.

Science , class X (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 7: How do Organisms Reproduce? > 7.3.3 (d) Reproductive Health > p. 125
Strength: 4/5
“We must also consider the possible health consequences of having sex. We have discussed in Class IX that diseases can be transmitted from person to person in a variety of ways. Since the sexual act is a very intimate connection of bodies, it is not surprising that many diseases can be sexually transmitted. These include bacterial infections such as gonorrhoea and syphilis, and viral infections such as warts and HIV-AIDS. Is it possible to prevent the transmission of such diseases during the sexual act? Using a covering, called a condom, for the penis during sex helps to prevent transmission of many of these infections to some extent.”
Why relevant

States sexual contact transmits various bacterial and viral infections (explicitly naming HIV) and that condom use reduces transmission—establishing sexual transmission as a common route for some viruses.

How to extend

A student could use this rule (sexual acts can transmit certain viruses) to investigate whether Hepatitis B is among those sexually transmissible viruses.

Science ,Class VIII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 3: Health: The Ultimate Treasure > Activity 3.4: Let us find out > p. 34
Strength: 4/5
“Diseases spread through contaminated water and food • Tuberculosis (TB): Hepatitis A; Bacteria: Virus; Lungs: Liver; Cough, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, night sweats: Fatigue, fever, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, jaundice, pain in the upper right abdomen; Avoiding close contact with TB-infected people, covering the mouth and nose, maintaining good hygiene, getting vaccinated: Drinking boiled water, vaccination • Tuberculosis (TB): Cholera; Bacteria: Bacteria; Lungs: Intestine; Cough, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, night sweats: Diarrhoea and dehydration; Avoiding close contact with TB-infected people, covering the mouth and nose, maintaining good hygiene, getting vaccinated: Maintain personal hygiene and good sanitary habits, consumption of properly cooked food and boiled drinking water, vaccination • Tuberculosis (TB): Typhoid; Bacteria: Bacteria; Lungs: Intestine; Cough, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, night sweats: Headache, abdominal discomfort, fever, and diarrhoea; Avoiding close contact with TB-infected people, covering the mouth and nose, maintaining good hygiene, getting vaccinated: Maintain personal hygiene and good sanitary habits, consumption of properly cooked food and boiled drinking water, vaccination • Tuberculosis (TB): Ascariasis (roundworms); Bacteria: Worms; Lungs: Intestine; Cough, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, night sweats: Worms in stool, loss of appetite, poor growth, diarrhoea, weight loss, anaemia; Avoiding close contact with TB-infected people, covering the mouth and nose, maintaining good hygiene, getting vaccinated: Maintain personal hygiene and good sanitary habits, consumption of properly cooked food and boiled drinking water”
Why relevant

Lists 'Hepatitis A' alongside modes like contaminated water/food, indicating that 'hepatitis' as a category includes types with differing transmission routes (not all hepatitis share the same routes).

How to extend

A student could use this to avoid overgeneralizing from one hepatitis type and instead check which hepatitis types (e.g., B) match the HIV pattern of blood/sexual/perinatal spread.

Science ,Class VIII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 3: Health: The Ultimate Treasure > Ability of the body to fight diseases > p. 37
Strength: 3/5
“You would have noticed that some people get sick more frequently than others, although living in a similar environment. Do you know why? The natural ability of our body to fight diseases is known as immunity. Our body has a special system called the immune system that helps fight against diseases. You might have taken some drops or injections in your childhood to protect yourself from certain diseases, such as polio, measles, tetanus, and hepatitis. These are vaccines that help prevent serious infections caused by viruses and bacteria. A vaccine helps our body fight certain diseases by training the immune system to recognise and attack harmful germs. providing what is known as acquired immunity—protection developed after exposure to a pathogen or a vaccine.”
Why relevant

Notes hepatitis is a vaccine‑preventable viral disease, implying it is viral and has established transmission routes that public health measures target.

How to extend

A student might follow this by looking up (or recalling) the specific transmission routes targeted by hepatitis B vaccination programs (e.g., perinatal prevention) to compare with HIV routes.

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Statement analysis

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Statement analysis

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Statement analysis

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