Blood Donor Screening Research Articles

A novel reagent for the screening of haptoglobin-deficient blood donors.

In Japan, the prevalence of haptoglobin deficiency is approximately 1 in 4000. Haptoglobin-deficient individuals may produce anti-haptoglobin from allo-immunization, leading to serious transfusion reactions. Therefore, implementation of a consistent supply of haptoglobin-deficient fresh frozen plasma is crucial. We developed a novel reagent to facilitate large-scale identification of haptoglobin-deficient individuals as potential donors of plasma products. We established mouse monoclonal anti-haptoglobin-producing cell lines (three clones) using the hybridoma method by immunizing mice with the haptoglobin protein. Purified antibodies were conjugated with carboxylate-modified polystyrene latex beads and used for haptoglobin measurements by the latex agglutination method using an automatic analyser (LABOSPECT008). Samples with low protein concentrations were re-examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to confirm the results. Additionally, the haptoglobin gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction to confirm the haptoglobin deletion allele (Hpdel ). From February to October 2022, 7476 blood donor samples were screened. Two haptoglobin-deficient and 21 low-haptoglobin-expressing individuals were identified. Two haptoglobin-deficient donors were found homozygous for Hpdel , and 19 (90%) of the 21 low-haptoglobin-expressing individuals were heterozygous for Hpdel , which includes the first reported case of heterozygous Hpdel /HpJohnson . We developed a new reagent for the detection of haptoglobin deficiency, which is automatable and inexpensive and appears useful for large-scale screening of blood donors.

Regulation of blood-screening in vitro diagnostics in sub-Saharan African countries remains a challenge.

According to the World Health Organization, blood must be screened for major transmitted infections before transfusion to prevent the possibility of passing an infection to the recipient. For accurate detection of infectious disease pathogens in the blood of donors, in-vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVDs) of high specificity and sensitivity should be used. In mature healthcare systems, the regulatory authorities authorize the usage of devices with the highest performance capabilities, which are also controlled through active market oversight. However, in Sub-Saharan African countries, the regulation of IVDs is often poorly developed. With the lack of stringent regulatory oversight, IVDs of poor quality can be put on the market and used for blood donor screening, which, ultimately, poses a great public health threat. The BloodTrain is a humanitarian project from the Germany Federal Ministry of Health that aims to help strengthen the regulatory authorities in Sub-Saharan partner countries. Here, we present the status of IVD regulation in the partner countries and the objectives that the BloodTrain project aims to achieve in the region toward regulating IVDs.

Clinical performance of a new multiplex assay for the detection of HIV-1, HIV-2, HCV, HBV, and HEV in blood donations in Catalonia (Spain).

Commercial multiplex nucleic acid tests (NATs) for HIV-1/HIV-2/HCV/HBV are widely used in developed countries to screen blood donations. HEV NAT screening has been implemented in some blood banks but is tested with a different assay. This study describes the clinical sensitivity and specificity of the Procleix® UltrioPlex E (UPxE) assay on the automated Procleix Panther® system for the simultaneous detection of HIV-1/HIV-2/HCV/HBV/HEV. To evaluate routine performance, 10,138 donations were tested in parallel with UPxE (in ID-NAT) and current assays (Procleix Ultrio Elite [UE] assay in ID-NAT and Procleix HEV assay in pool of 16). To assess clinical sensitivity, archived donations positive for HCV, HIV-1, HBV, HEV, or occult HBV infection (OBI) were tested (n = 104-186). Five donations were initially reactive (IR) with UPxE; none of them were reactive with current assays. Two of the three samples IR for HIV-1/HIV-2/HCV/HBV were confirmed positive for HBV (HBV NAT and/or anti-HBV core positive) and classified as OBI. The two samples IR for HEV were confirmed positive (Procleix HEV assay in ID-NAT and in-house RT-PCR HEV assay). One sample IR for HIV-1/HIV-2/HCV/HBV with UPxE and another with UE were not confirmed. UPxE showed a specificity of 99.99% for HIV-1/HIV-2/HCV/HBV and 100% for HEV. Comparable sensitivities were observed for HIV-1, HCV, HBV, OBI, and HEV samples tested in the UPxE, UE, and Procleix HEV assays. UPxE may provide an efficient solution for the simultaneous detection of HIV-1, HIV-2, HCV, HBV, and HEV in blood donations in a single test.

Transfusion-transmitted Babesia spp.: a changing landscape of epidemiology, regulation, and risk mitigation.

Babesia spp. are tick-borne parasites with a global distribution and diversity of vertebrate hosts. Over the next several decades, climate change is expected to impact humans, vectors, and vertebrate hosts and change the epidemiology of Babesia. Although humans are dead-end hosts for tick-transmitted Babesia, human-to-human transmission of Babesia spp. from transfusion of red blood cells and whole blood-derived platelet concentrates has been reported. In most patients, transfusion-transmitted Babesia (TTB) results in a moderate-to-severe illness. Currently, in North America, most cases of TTB have been described in the United States. TTB cases outside North America are rare, but case numbers may change over time with increased recognition of babesiosis and as the epidemiology of Babesia is impacted by climate change. Therefore, TTB is a concern of microbiologists working in blood operator settings, as well as in clinical settings where transfusion occurs. Microbiologists play an important role in deploying blood donor screening assays in Babesia endemic regions, identifying changing risks for Babesia in non-endemic areas, investigating recipients of blood products for TTB, and drafting TTB policies and guidelines. In this review, we provide an overview of the clinical presentation and epidemiology of TTB. We identify approaches and technologies to reduce the risk of collecting blood products from Babesia-infected donors and describe how investigations of TTB are undertaken. We also describe how microbiologists in Babesia non-endemic regions can assess for changing risks of TTB and decide when to focus on laboratory-test-based approaches or pathogen reduction to reduce TTB risk.

Seroepidemiology of Hepatitis E virus among the voluntary blood donors in the coastal region of Karnataka, India

Background: Hepatitis E is a fecal orally transmitted disease and an emerging transfusion transmissible infection with potential transfusion safety implications. Hepatitis E Virus screening among blood donors is not routinely done despite the fact that it is endemic in India. As there are very few reports and evidence, the justification for mandating HEV screening among blood donors is still only marginally convincing. Therefore, the present study was carried out to determine the incidence and prevalence of HEV infection among blood donors in Coastal Karnataka, India. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital in Udupi district of Karnataka, India. A total of 1939 blood donors were randomly selected between June 2020 to June 2022 to participate in the study, where anti-HEV IgM antibody screening was performed using HEV IgM ELISA test kit (DiaPro, Italy). Further, a randomly selected 588 and 1620 pooled donor samples were screened for anti-HEV IgG antibodies and HEV RNA, respectively. Results: The overall prevalence of HEV IgM antibodies among study population is found to be 1.39%, with a statistically significant difference between males and females (n=20, 1.18% vs. n=7, 3.07 %; p=0.027). The prevalence of HEV IgG antibodies was 11.39%. Exposure to agriculture, animal husbandry, and poor hand hygiene were significant risk factors for HEV IgG reactivity. Conclusions: Given the high prevalence of HEV viral markers in the study population, routine screening of blood donors for risk factors and implementation of serologic testing in endemic areas may be considered.

Chagas Disease: a Review and Perspective on Laboratory Diagnostics in the United States

Chagas disease is a chronic infection by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. The epidemiology of the disease results from the distribution of its arthropod vector, the triatomine bug, throughout Latin America and the southern United States, as well as migration of chronically infected individuals worldwide. In mammals, the parasite cycles through an extracellular infective form and an intracellular replicative form with tropism for cardiac and gastrointestinal (GI) tissues. Over decades, the low-grade inflammatory response can lead to cardiomyopathy and GI dysmotility disorders. This natural history necessitates presentation-dependent diagnostic approaches for clinical workup and risk-based screening, as well as blood donor and organ transplant screening. Implementing effective Chagas disease testing in the U.S. is an increasing topic of interest but is hindered by low provider awareness, few FDA-cleared assays, and limited laboratory capacity for multi-step confirmatory testing. This article provides a clinically focused review of Chagas disease, outlines the current status of clinical testing in the U.S., and reports on new innovations in diagnostics and research that may impact the field.

HTLV-1 and blood donation.

Human T-cell leukaemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is a human retrovirus that causes adult T-cell lymphoma and HTLV-associated myelopathy. In this issue, Rosadas et al. use data from a recent WHO report to describe how blood banks test for HTLV-1 and how this testing contributes to public health surveillance for the virus. Commentary on: Rosadas et al. HTLV-1 screening of blood donations: we are systematically missing opportunities. Br J Haematol 2023;202:1220-1223.

Nucleic acid testing for monkeypox in United States blood donor specimens.

The 2022 multi-country outbreak of monkeypox (mpox) resulted in blood collection and public health agencies closely monitoring for changes in transmission dynamics that could pose a threat to the blood supply. While mpox virus (MPXV) is not known to be transfusion transmissible, there have been several studies demonstrating the detection of MPXV in blood. We evaluated the performance characteristics of a research use only (RUO) nucleic acid amplification test for MPXV. The assay was developed to detect MPXV DNA in plasma and serum specimens from human blood donors. The sensitivity of the RUO MPXV Assay was determined using a synthetic DNA sequence, purified full-length genomic DNA, and a chemically inactivated virus. Specificity was determined using fresh plasma samples collected from blood donors during the outbreak. Plasma samples collected from donors considered at increased risk for exposure to mpox were also tested. For sensitivity, the 95% limit of detection (LOD) ranged from 0.26 copies/mL (inactivated virus) to 31.65 copies/mL (synthetic DNA) to 166.61 copies/mL (for full-length DNA). All donor samples tested with the RUO MPXV Assay were nonreactive, resulting in a specificity of 100% (95% CI, 99.93%-100.00%). The RUO MPXV Assay was developed as a potential blood donation screening assay in response to the outbreak. While not directly comparable, the 95% LOD fiducial limits obtained from partial- and full-length DNA analysis were similar to other manufacturers' MPXV assays. Additionally, this assay demonstrated high specificity for screening blood donors.

News Brief: Gay and bisexual men will no longer be singled out in screening of potential blood donors.

News Brief: Gay and bisexual men will no longer be singled out in screening of potential blood donors.

Rezultaty skryninhu donorskoi krovy na naiavnist antytil do hepatytu S u sluzhbi krovy Ukrainy za 2019–2021 rr.

Introduction. An indicator of social and medical well-being, in particular, during wartime in Ukraine, is the level of spread of one of the hemotransmissive infections – hepatitis C. After being contaminated with hepatitis C virus donor blood is transformed from a life-saving treatment to a source of deadly disease, all the above accompanied by lack of statistics on cases of infection transmission during blood transfusions. There is an urgent need for the blood service of Ukraine to implement method of polymerase chain reaction, widely used in global practice, which will make it possible to detect blood transmissive pathogens even in the early phases of infection. Detection of potential infectious agents should be established in Ukraine at an appropriate level with the mandatory use of methods and quality test systems that are implemented in countries of European Union and United States of America. The aim of the study. To analyze the donor`s blood screening results on the presence of hepatitis C antibodies according to the blood service of Ukraine reports for the years 2019-2021. Materials and Methods. An epidemiological, single-moment, continuous, retrospective analysis was carried out using biostatistical data in accordance with the order of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine № 353 of 10.12.98 “On ensuring the safety and quality of donated blood, its components and derivatives preparation” (reports of regional centers for blood transfusion of Ukraine) for the period 2019-2021 while applying medico-statistical methods: retrospective, copying, mathematical, graphic, abstract, deductive awareness, structural and logical systemic analysis. Screening of donor blood for the presence of hepatitis C antibodies was accomplished by the enzyme immunoassay method. The dynamics of the prevalence of hepatitis C markers among donors per 100,000 studies with deviation indices (DI+/-) were analyzed. Results. The number of tests conducted for the presence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in 2019, 2020 and 2021 was 502155, 445224 and 474488 respectively, indicating certain decrease of donor blood screening potential. According to the quantitative hierarchy, the highest peak in the prevalence of hepatitis C markers in 2019 was detected in Ivano-Frankivsk region, while the lowest value of this same index documented in Sumy region. According to the obtained database, the average all-Ukraine index of the hepatitis C virus prevalence in donor`s blood decreased from 832.0 in 2019 to 527.3 in 2021 per 100.000 probes. Conclusions. Taking into consideration the overall epidemic situation related to the prevalence of hepatitis C markers in donor’s blood in Ukraine due to period 2019-2021, the Parliamentary view on the problem, with regard to the Order of the Ministry of health care of Ukraine “On the approval of measures and means for preventing infections during patient care”, there is acute necessity for the implementation of modern diagnostic methodology (namely – the polymerase chain reaction) for the detection of potential hemotransmissive infections in donor`s blood, with simultaneous enhancement of elucidative activities of public organizations regarding the prevention of infections with special regard to the hemotransmissive infections. Keywords: screening for hepatitis C markers, donor’s blood, regions of Ukraine, prevalence per 100,000 probes.

Seroprevalence of transfusion transmissible infections by ELISA in donors testing negative with rapid ICT in Asokoro District Hospital, Abuja, Nigeria

Background: Blood transfusion saves lives, but it is associated with many complications which include transfusion transmissible infections (TTIs). The major objectives of this study were to determine; the prevalence of TTIs in the blood donated at Asokoro District Hospital, Abuja, Nigeria from 01 January to 31 December 2019; investigate the accuracy of rapid immunochromatographic (ICT) tests for preliminary TTIs screening of blood donors’ samples and confirmed by ELISA test; and establish baseline data that will provide the impetus for improvement in equipment, infrastructure, and health system management, with the ultimate goal of ensuring safer blood transfusion practice.
 Methodology: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study of records of blood donors at the Blood Bank of Asokoro District Hospital, a quasi-tertiary centre situated at Abuja, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), northcentral Nigeria, between 01 January to 31 December 2019. The socio-demographic biodata (age and gender), blood parameters (PCV and blood groups), and TTIs test results (by rapid ICT kit and ELISA) of donors were manually extracted from the record books of the hospital’s blood bank. Only donor blood samples that initially tested negative for TTIs met the inclusion criteria. The data were entered into the spreadsheet of Microsoft Excel, and analysed with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows version 23.0. Chi square test was used to determine association between variables and p value less than 0.05 was considered statistical significance.
 Results: A total of 1400 blood samples of donors, received within the study period, met the inclusion criteria of testing negative for TTIs on rapid ICT kit test. The mean age (± SD) of the donors was 35.6±6.7 years with age range of 18-67 years. The median age was 35 years, and the predominant age group was 30-39 years, accounting for 55.4% (775/1400). Majority of the donors (97.1%, 1359/1400) were males. In terms of ABO blood group distribution, group O Rh D positive was the commonest, followed by group A Rh D positive, while the least is group AB Rh D positive. The overall prevalence of TTIs by ELISA test was 4.9% (68/1400). This prevalence was highest for HCV (1.9%, 26/1400), followed by HIV (1.2%, 17/1400), HBV (0.9%, 13/1400) and syphilis (0.9%, 12/1400).
 Conclusion: The detection of TTIs by ELISA test from false negative donor samples preliminarily screened with rapid ICT kit highlighted by our study speaks to the unreliability of rapid ICT kits in screening of blood donors for TTIs. There is need therefore for health authorities in Nigeria and other LMICs to ensure widespread availability of highly sensitive blood screening methods such as ELISA to the point where it will be possible to enforce legislation against the use of the less accurate rapid ICT screening kits.

Prevalence and trends of transfusion transmissible infections among blood donors in Basra, Iraq

BackgroundDespite saving millions of lives through blood transfusion, transfusion-transmissible infections (TTIs) still threaten the lives of patients requiring blood transfusion. Hence, screening blood donors and studying the prevalence of TTIs...

The Pattern of Rh Phenotype among Voluntary Blood Donors – A Single-Center Observation from North India

Background: Human blood is precious and its availability and requirement are important elements of a comprehensive health-care delivery. Healthy voluntary donors are key sources to maintain the supply of human blood, and due care is warranted to ensure that the right blood reaches the right patient. Blood donor screening is standard practice, and the knowledge of ABO and Rh phenotype study is important. Prevalence and pattern of Rh phenotypes in a particular area may be important for various functioning of any blood bank. Materials and Method: Various centers frequently showcase prevalence pattern of Rh phenotype at a specified centre or region. A similar study was undertaken from collected data of voluntary blood donors in our tertiary care center. Results: Out of 2000 donor samples, B, A, O, and AB were in the decreasing order of frequency with 33.3%, 29.6%, 25.7%, and 11.4%, respectively. The most common Rh antigens observed were e (97.1%), followed by D (93.8%), C (88.45%), c (51.05%), and E (18.45%). Out of eight phenotypes in D-positive donors, R1R1 (DCCee), R1r (DCcee), and R1R2 (DCcEe) were most frequently observed. In D-negative donors, rr (ddccee), r’r (ddCcee), and r’r’ (CCddee) were the most common. Conclusion: The Rh phenotype pattern in our centre had diverse pattern and knowledge of this would guide further studies.

Seroepidemiology of Hepatitis E virus among the voluntary blood donors in the coastal region of Karnataka, India

Background: Hepatitis E is a fecal orally transmitted disease and an emerging transfusion transmissible infection with potential transfusion safety implications. Hepatitis E Virus screening among blood donors is not routinely done despite the fact that it is endemic in India. As there are very few reports and evidence, the justification for mandating HEV screening among blood donors is still only marginally convincing. Therefore, the present study was carried out to determine the incidence and prevalence of HEV infection among blood donors in Coastal Karnataka, India. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital in Udupi district of Karnataka, India. A total of 1939 blood donors were randomly selected between June 2020 to June 2022 to participate in the study, where anti-HEV IgM antibody screening was performed using HEV IgM ELISA test kit (DiaPro, Italy). Further, a randomly selected 588 and 1620 pooled donor samples were screened for anti-HEV IgG antibodies and HEV RNA, respectively. Results: The overall prevalence of HEV IgM antibodies among study population is found to be 1.39%, with a statistically significant difference between males and females (n=20, 1.18% vs. n=7, 3.07 %; p=0.027). The prevalence of HEV IgG antibodies was 11.39%. Exposure to agriculture, animal husbandry, and poor hand hygiene were significant risk factors for HEV IgG reactivity. Conclusions: Given the high prevalence of HEV viral markers in the study population, routine screening of blood donors for risk factors and implementation of serologic testing in endemic areas may be considered.

Donated Blood Screening for HIV, HCV and HBV by ID-NAT and the Residual Risk of Iatrogenic Transmission in a Tertiary Care Hospital Blood Bank in Puebla, Mexico.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) can be transmitted by blood transfusion. Most transmission occurs during the acute viremic phase (AVP), before antibody development. To reduce transmission risk, individual donor nucleic acid testing (ID-NAT) is used. In Puebla, Mexico, serological tests and ID-NAT have been applied to screen blood donors and detect individuals in AVP. In the present study, 106,125 blood donors' data in two periods (2012-2015 and 2017-2019) were analyzed. The residual risk (RR) values were calculated considering ID-NAT results. The RR for HIV was 14 in 1 million donations or 1 in 71,428, the RR for HVC was 6.8 in 1 million donations or 1 in 147,058 and, for HBV, it was 156 in 1 million donations, or 1 in 6410. Previously, it was predicted that the transmission RR of these viruses would be reduced in Mexico through better screening with NAT. The use of ID-NAT has, indeed, increased the safety of blood reserves for HIV and HCV. However, more research is needed to determine why the residual risk of HBV did not decrease as much over the study period. ID-NAT is an important complementary tool for blood donor screening that should be implemented.

Detecting the Prevalence of Hepatitis C Virus among Iraqi People

Background: Infection with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major public health issue worldwide and remains a vital etiology of long-term hepatitis. This study aimed to detect the prevalence of HCV infection among Iraqi people. This research was proposed to detect the frequency of HCV infection in renal failure patients, thalassemia patients, blood donors, and Iraqi medical staff. Such prevalence potentially could assist in the development of a preventive program for this infection and orient future studies. Methods and Results: Cross-sectional research was conducted in Thi-Qar Province (Iraq). The enrolled 1650 individuals (1180 males and 470 females, age range of 1-85 years) were classified into four study groups. Group 1 included 120 patients with renal failure, Group 2 included 220 patients suffering from thalassemia, Group 3 included 1259 blood donor subjects, and Group 4 included 51 subjects from the medical staff. Serum anti-HCV-IgG-Abs were detected qualitatively by a human HCV-IgG-ELISA Kit (MyBioSource, USA). The findings revealed that out of 1650 subjects, only 53(3.2%) were infected with HCV. The highest prevalence was reported among thalassemia patients 34/220(15.45%), followed by renal failure patients 8/120(6.66%) and then the medical staff group 3/51(5.88%), whereas the lowest prevalence was reported among the blood donor group 8/1259(0.64%). The total infection rate of HCV was higher among males [33/53(62.3%)] than females [20/53(37.7%)], with significant differences (P<0.05). We found a significant difference in HCV infection rate according to the age range of the study subjects (P<0.05). The higher infection percentages of 29/53(54.7%) and 15/53(28.3%) were found in age groups of 1-20 years and 21-40 years, respectively, followed by the age group of 41-60 years, which had infection percentages of 7/53(13.2%), while the lowest infection rate was reported in the age group of more than 60 years, which was 2/53(3.8%). Conclusion: The frequency rate of HCV infection among Iraqi people is similar to those in most Asian and non-Asian studied populations, and the infection rate was higher in males and inversely correlated with the age of the subjects. The main routes of HCV infection were blood transfusions, renal dialysis, and HCWs. Thalassemic and hemodialysis patients were potentially vulnerable to HCV infection. Effective screening methods and blood donor screening protocols are likely required to prevent the spread of HCV infection.

Development and clinical validation of a one-step pentaplex real-time reverse transcription PCR assay for detection of hepatitis virus B, C, E, Treponema pallidum, and a human housekeeping gene

BackgroundWith the safety of blood transfusion being a major public health concern, the development of a rapid, sensitive, specific, and cost-effective multiplex PCR assay for simultaneous detection of hepatitis B virus(HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepatitis E virus (HEV), and Treponema pallidum(T. pallidum) in blood is crucial.MethodsFive primer pairs and probes were designed towards conserved regions of target genes and used to establish a one-step pentaplex real-time reverse transcription PCR(qRT-PCR) assay for simultaneous detection of HBV, HCV, HEV, T. pallidum, and RNase P(housekeeping gene), providing sample quality check. The clinical performance of the assay was further determined with 2400 blood samples from blood donors and patients in Zhejiang province, and compared the results with commercial singleplex qPCR and serological assays.ResultsThe 95% limit of detection(LOD) of HBV, HCV, HEV, and T. pallidum were 7.11 copies/µL, 7.65 copies/µL, 8.45 copies/µL, and 9.06 copies/µL, respectively. Moreover, the assay has good specificity and precision. Compared to the singleplex qPCR assay, the novel assay for detecting HBV, HCV, HEV, and T. pallidum presented 100% clinical sensitivity, specificity, and consistency. Several discrepant results between serological and pentaplex qRT-PCR assays were found. Of 2400 blood samples, there were 2(0.08%) HBsAg positive samples, 3(0.13%) anti-HCV positive samples, 29(1.21%) IgM anti-HEV positive samples and 6(0.25%) anti-T. pallidum positive samples proven negative in nucleic acid detection. 1(0.04%) HBV DNA positive sample and 1(0.04%) HEV RNA positive sample were detected negative by serological testing.ConclusionsThe developed pentaplex qRT-PCR is the first assay on simultaneous, sensitive, specific, and reproducible detection of HBV, HCV, HEV, T. pallidum, and RNase P in a single tube. It could detect pathogens in blood during the window period of infection and is a good tool for effectively screening blood donors and early clinical diagnosis.

Trend in seroprevalence of HTLV-1/2 in Taiwanese blood donors-A 10-year follow-up.

This study evaluated the Human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) screening policy impact on the HTLV seroprevalence from 2009 to 2018 as well as the differences between administrative districts in terms of prevalence distribution in Taiwan. Since February 1996, the Taiwan Blood Services Foundation (TBSF) had conducted HTLV screening of blood donors. The HTLV seroprevalence was 0.032% in 1999. This cross-sectional study included donors' data collected from blood donation centres across Taiwan from 2009 to 2018. Enzyme immunoassay and Western blot assay were used for screening and confirmation of HTLV infections. In this study, the researchers calculated the trends in the HTLV rates of first-time and repeat donors across time as well as the HTLV prevalence distribution across the 22 administrative districts of Taiwan. Amongst 17 977 429 employed blood donations, 739 HTLV-seropositive donations (4.11 per 100 000 donations) were identified. The HTLV-positive donors were aged between 17 and 64 years, with a median age of 49 years. The overall seropositivity rates of first-time and repeat donors were 34.36/100 000 and 1.27/100 000. HTLV seroprevalence in first-time blood donors significantly decreased by 57% (crude odds ratio [95% confidence interval] (crude OR [95% CI]) = 0.43 [0.28-0.64]) within 10 years. A slight decline was also identified in repeat donors (crude OR [95% CI] = 0.73 [0.4-1.32]). Donors from different districts showed significantly varied prevalence. Most districts with high prevalence are situated in eastern Taiwan, for both donation types. Older blood donors were more likely to be infected with HTLV than younger ones in first time and repeat donors. Middle age donors (50-65 years) had an 18.47-39.65 greater risk than those aged <20 years. Significant higher risk of female was observed in both donation types. Amongst different age groups, first-time female donors increase 1.31-1.88 times infection risk and female in repeat donor group had 1.55-3.43 times greater risk. Over years of implementation of the HTLV blood donor screening policy by the TBSF, the HTLV seroprevalence of first-time donors has decreased consistently. Moreover, the HTLV seroprevalence of repeat donors has dropped considerably. This implies that the screening policy provides continued benefit. Females and older blood donors were more likely infected with HTLV than males and younger blood donors. The influence of age on infection was greater amongst first-time donors than amongst repeat donors. Therefore, appropriate measures should be taken to ensure public safety.

Is your blood bag safe for transfusion? Bacterial screening of donor blood and its components: An essential infection control tool for safe transfusion practice

Introduction: Transfusion-associated bacterial sepsis is still a major public health concern that has received little attention. Data on bacterial contamination of blood are scarce, despite rising demand for blood transfusions. Blood bags intended for transfusion should be free of microorganisms. Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence, identify the microorganisms involved in bacterial contamination of donor blood and blood components and determine blood products most likely to be contaminated, received in microbiology laboratory for sterility testing. Settings and Design: The study was carried out in the department of microbiology in association with the transfusion medicine department of tertiary care hospital in Western Uttar Pradesh from January 2023 to June 2023. Methodology: A total of 87 cellular blood components were tested aerobically for bacterial contamination using the BD BACTEC™ FX 40 automated culture system. For incubation, culture vials that showed positive signals were subcultured onto a set of solid media followed by bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Results: The overall prevalence rate was 14.9% (whole blood 18.75%, platelets 14.2%, packed cells 13.3% and fresh frozen plasma 10.5%). The contaminants were Aeromonas hydrophila, Sphingomonas paucimobilis, Escherichia coli, Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Delftia acidovorans, and Candida albicans. Discussion: The bacterial contamination in blood products suggests the patient who receives blood products is at risk of developing infection. Implementing proper blood transfusion policies, donor screening and technical staff training will all help to reduce the contamination rate of blood and blood components. Conclusion: Bacterial contamination of blood bags indicates a potential risk of healthcare-associated infection. Microbiological Sterility testing for donor blood bags in blood banks should be used as mandatory infection control Tool for Quality assurance.

Effectiveness of Malaria Antibody Test for Screening Blood Donors

Effectiveness of Malaria Antibody Test for Screening Blood Donors