Transfusion and risk of infection in Canada: UPDATE 2004.

doi:10.1155/2004/651237

Abstract

Highlights

In Canada and other countries, many steps are taken to minimize the risk of infection through the transfusion of blood or blood products [1]
While any infectious agent that has a blood phase has the potential to be transmitted by transfusion of blood or blood products, the probability of infection in the recipient depends on a number of factors, including [4]:
The effectiveness of donor screening or donor testing for the agent. The importance of these factors is well illustrated by the tale of West Nile virus (WNV)

Summary

PAEDIATRIC INFECTIOUS DISEASE NOTES

In Canada and other countries, many steps are taken to minimize the risk of infection through the transfusion of blood or blood products [1]. Given the blood phase of infection, WNV was shown in 2002 to be transmissible by blood [7], with an estimated mean risk of 2/10,000 to 5/10,000 (maximum 21/10,000) in outbreak regions in the United States [8] This resulted in rapid efforts to develop a screening test to detect WNV infection in blood donors [9]. This measure reflects the sensitivity of the test and the prevalence of infection among donors in a given region This past season, the blood donor WNV screening program has had the added benefit of providing public health authorities with a marker for infection rates among local and regional populations. In Canada, the infectious disease risks of transfusion are minimized through multiple steps, including: blood collection from volunteer unpaid donors, donor interview and selection procedures, donor screening by serological and other tests (Table 1), and viral inactivation procedures included in the TABLE 1 Testing of blood donors in Canada* by Canadian Blood Services (CBS) and Héma-Québec

Leukocyte depletion

Serratia marcescens

Prion vCJD

Findings

Malaria no Chagas no