Abstract
BackgroundTransfusion-transmissible infections (TTIs) pose a major health risk in Cameroon given the high prevalence of such pathogens and increased demands for blood donations in the local communities. This study aims at establishing the prevalence of commonly encountered TTIs among blood donors and transfusion-related complications among recipients in an urban center of Cameroon.MethodsA total of 477 blood donors and 83 blood recipients were recruited by consecutive sampling at the Laquintinie Hospital in Douala (LHD), Cameroon. Serum samples from blood donors were tested by quantitative enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and/or using various Rapid diagnostic test (RDT) for presence of Hepatits B (HBV) viral antigens, and antibodies to human immunodeficiency (HIV-1/2), Hepatits B (HCV) and Treponema pallidum. Recipient’s medical records were also analyzed for possible transfusion-associated complications.ResultsThe male/female sex ratio of the blood donors was 4/1 with a mean age of 30.2 (Sd = 8.3) years. Of all blood donors, 64/467 (13.7%) were infected by at least one of the four TTIs. Infected volunteer donors represented 8.3% while infected family donors comprised 14.3% of the donor population. The prevalence of HCV, HIV, HBV and T. pallidum were 1.3%, 1.8%, 3.5%, and 8.1%, respectively. More than half of the blood recipients were female (78.3%) and the mean age was 20.6 (SD = 16.1) years. The causes of severe anemia indicative of transfusion in recipients varied with wards (postpartum hemorrhage, caesarean section, uterine or cervical lacerations, abortions, urinary tract infections, severe malaria, vaso-occlusive attacks, wounds and gastrointestinal bleeding). The most frequent complications were chills and hematuria, which represented 46.1% of all observed complications. Other complications such as nausea, vomiting, jaundice, sudden diarrhea, anxiety, tachycardia, or hyperthermia were also found in recipients. Three cases of deaths occurred during the study, including a girl of less than one year.ConclusionThis study confirms the presence of blood-borne infectious diseases in blood donors at the LHD, identifying T. pallidum as the greatest threat to blood safety in the region, and hematuria as the most common immunological complications in blood recipients.
Highlights
Transfusion-transmissible infections (TTIs) pose a major health risk in Cameroon given the high prevalence of such pathogens and increased demands for blood donations in the local communities
Blood safety has greatly improved over the past 15 years, TTIs still represent a major public health problem in Cameroon given the high prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections, hepatitis, malaria, and several sexually transmissible diseases (STD) [2,3]
This study aimed to study the prevalence of common TTIs among blood donors and to analyze the possible complications due to blood transfusion among recipients at the Laquintinie Hospital in Douala (LHD), a major blood transfusion center in the coastal region of Cameroon
Summary
Transfusion-transmissible infections (TTIs) pose a major health risk in Cameroon given the high prevalence of such pathogens and increased demands for blood donations in the local communities. In Cameroon, the current blood safety guidelines necessitate blood banks to routinely perform serological testing for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and Treponema pallidum (T. pallidum) These guidelines progressively followed the exponential rise in blood donors from 75,000 in 1992 to 130,000 in 2002 [1], necessitate regular monitoring and adaptation to frequently changing epidemiological and demographic parameters that include urbanization, migration flows, and increased demand for blood transfusion in the country. Data recorded in 2006 show that 26,079 units of blood were collected in health facilities in Cameroon with over 2,477 infected cases, a TTIs prevalence of 9.5% among blood donors Of these infectious risks, viral infections (HIV, HBV and HCV) are the most feared by patients and prescribers [4,5,6,7]. Bacterial infections including T. pallidum have been reported in Cameroon, and are common in many other countries [11,12,13,14]
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