Objective To assess the effectiveness and safety of hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG) in interrupting the intrauterine transmission of HBV.Methods The Cochrane Library (Issue 3, 2007), MEDLINE (1996 to April 2007), CBM (1978 to April 2007), and EMBASE (1980 to April 2007) were searched. The quality of included studies was evaluated and meta-analysis was performed. Results Four studies involving 359 participants with HBVDNA (+) were included. All the included studies were judged to be inadequate in regard to the reporting of randomization, concealment of allocation and blinding. Meta-analysis based on the included studies showed that HBIG significantly decreased the intrauterine transmission rate of HBV compared to the control group [OR 0.17, 95%CI (0.09 to 0.31), Plt;0.000 01]. No HBIG-related severe adverse reactions were reported. Conclusions HBIG is effective and safe for the interruption of intrauterine transmission of HBV. However, because of the high risk of selection and detection bias in the included studies, this evidence is not b enough. Large-scale randomised trials on the use of HIBG for the interruption of intrauterine transmission of HBV are needed