Seroprevalence of Transfusion Transmissible Infections (TTIs) among blood donors in a tertiary care hospital, central India: A prospective study

Abstract

Background: Blood transfusion having some risks of transfusion transmissible infections (TTIs) in the recipients especially when blood is collected during window period. In Africa, about 10-15% of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission had been related to blood transfusions. Aims: The aim of this study is to present the prevalence of TTIs among the apparently healthy donors, both voluntary as well as replacement donors. Settings and Design: This was a prospective study, carried out in a blood bank attached to a tertiary care hospital, Central India. Materials and Methods: All blood bags collected from these blood donors during the study period were screened for TTIs like hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg; Hepalisa, J. Mitra), anti-HIV antibodies (HIV Ab; HIV 3rd generation kit for detection of antibodies to HIV1 and HIV2, J. Mitra), anti-hepatitis C virus antibodies (HCV Ab; MicroELISA 3rd generation, J. Mitra), and Venereal Diseases Research Laboratory (VDRL) reactivity (Carbogen kit, Tulip Diagnostics). Serum were separated from all blood bags and serological test was performed according to the instructions provided by the manufacturers of respective kit. All seroreactive blood bags were considered as positive for TTIs and the blood bags were discarded. Statistical Analysis: A total of 10,582 blood donors were selected for blood donation after clinical history and brief medical examination by medical officer. Blood bags collected from them were screened for TTIs. Among the total blood bags screened, 273 (2.57%) were found positive for transfusion transmissible infectious diseases. Results: Among TTIs, the most common infection was hepatitis B followed by HIV infection in our study. Prevalence of coinfection in our study was very low (0.01%). Voluntary donations have low seroreactivity (2.40%) for TTIs as compared to replacement donations (3.20%). Conclusions: Multiple infections have a very small but definite risk to the recipients, recieving blood and blood products. Hepatitis B was the most common infection in our study. The incidence of coinfection was very low in our study. Prevalence of TTIs was more among replacement donors as compared to the voluntary donors. So, it is possible to improve the safety of blood and blood product by the promotion of voluntary donation, selection of low-risk donors, and use of highly sensitive laboratory screening test.