Serum Neopterin Is Not Influenced by Age and Blood Group of Transfusion-Transmitted Infection Negative Blood Donors.

Ahsan Ashfaq,Madiha Ariff,Noor Un Nisa,Ayesha Ejaz,Suresh Langhani,Sumaira Riffat,Fareena Khalil Ahmed

doi:10.7759/cureus.9636

Abstract

ObjectivesTo measure serum neopterin levels in blood donors of the local population and to study its relationship with age and blood group of transfusion-transmitted infection (TTI) negative blood donors.MethodologyThis cross-sectional study was carried out in the Department of Physiology at Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College (LNMC), Karachi, Pakistan, in collaboration with the Basic Medical Sciences Institute and Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre (JPMC). Data were collected from January 2018 to July 2018. A total of 174 blood donors participated in the study, who were selected by using a random sampling technique. They were screened through the standard procedures used for screening at the JPMC blood bank for TTIs as per the World Health Organization recommendations. Serum neopterin was estimated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. Data analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Chi-square and ANOVA (analysis of variance) were applied, and tests of significance were kept as P < 0.05.ResultsNeopterin level in the serum of TTI-positive blood donors was 15.1 ± 4.59 nmol/L, which was above the normal range and cutoff value of 10 nmol/L, whereas the neopterin level in the serum of TTI-negative blood donors was 6.1 ± 1.82 nmol/L (P = 0.001). In TTI-negative blood donors, the neopterin levels were within normal limits and were not influenced by age and blood groups (P > 0.05).ConclusionsSerum neopterin levels did not report any significant difference in terms of age and blood group of TTI-negative blood donors and were seen to be within normal limits.

Highlights

Transfusion of blood is a vital element of health care that can save millions and millions of lives; this life-saving technique might seldom be coupled with a risk of transmitting disease from the infected donor to the recipient [1]
Neopterin level in the serum of transmitted infection (TTI)-positive blood donors was 15.1 ± 4.59 nmol/L, which was above the normal range and cutoff value of 10 nmol/L, whereas the neopterin level in the serum of TTI-negative blood donors was 6.1 ± 1.82 nmol/L (P = 0.001)
In TTI-negative blood donors, the neopterin levels were within normal limits and were not influenced by age and blood groups (P > 0.05)

Summary

Introduction

Transfusion of blood is a vital element of health care that can save millions and millions of lives; this life-saving technique might seldom be coupled with a risk of transmitting disease from the infected donor to the recipient [1]. With transfusion of each unit of blood, there exists a 1% chance of transfusion-related complications, which included TTIs such as hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immune-deficiency virus (HIV), malaria, and syphilis [4]. In countries such as Pakistan, where the presence of voluntary blood donors is limited, much dependency is laid on replacing and paying donors, in addition to a lack of systematic screening strategies [5]. In comparison to voluntary donors, commercially acquired blood donors carry more chances of infection and more prone to transmit TTIs. Far-reaching consequences are observed in both recipients and their families with regard to the transfusion of infected blood-related morbidity and mortality [6]

Objectives

Methods

Conclusion