How Safe is Blood? A 5 Year Retrospective Study

Introduction: Blood is a scarce and life saving resource, however blood transfusion can be a source for transmitting life threatening infections if screening is not carried out properly. Aim: The objective of the present study was to assess the prevalence and trend of transfusion transmitted infections (HIV, HBsAg, HCV and syphilis and malaria infections in the pretransfusion blood) among voluntary and replacement donors in the Department of transfusion Medicine in a multispecialty hospital of Mohali during the period from Jan 2008 to Dec 2012. Methods: A retrospective review of donors’ record covering the period from 2008 to 2012 was carried out. All samples were screened for HIV, HBsAg, HCV, Syphilis and Malaria. Results: Of the 45,337 samples studied, 4144 (9.1%) were voluntary donors and the remaining 41193 (90.8%) were replacement donors. The overall prevalence of HIV, HbsAg, HCV and syphilis were 0.44, 1.27, 0.23 and 0.28%, respectively. One blood donor tested revealed positivity for malarial parasite. Majority were replacement donors with male preponderance. In all the markers tested there was increased prevalence of TTI among the replacement donors as compared to voluntary donors. Conclusion: By implementing strict donor criteria and using sensitive screening tests, it may be possible to reduce the incidence of TTI in the Indian scenario.

Abstract licence: CC BY-NC-ND

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