Sero-Prevalence of Major Transfusion-Transmitted Infections (TTIS) Among Blood Donors Of Nnewi, Southeastern Nigeria

Download Article


Authors : Michael Olugbamila Dada, Kalu Steven Okorafor, Eze T, Onwurah O W

Abstract:

Background: The field of transfusion medicine has encountered a huge problem in providing safe blood and blood products; therefore there is a need to improve testing for Transfusion transmitted Diseases (TTDs) and the selection of blood donors.

Objective: The objective of the present study was to estimate the prevalence of TTIs among healthy blood donors.

Methods: A total of 12,326 healthy blood donors reporting to our blood bank in Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, were screened for Hepatitis B surface Antigen (HBsAg), Hepatitis C virus (HCV), Human Immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and Venereal Disease Research Laboratories (VDRL) tests.

Results: A total of 12,326 healthy blood donors aged 18-60 years were screened for TTIs. Out of these 333 donors (2.7%) were seropositive for HBsAg,219 (1.8%) were seropositive for HIV,195 (1.6%) were seropositive for HCV and 57 (0.5%) had shown sero positivity for syphilis. More male donors 660 (5.4%) were infected with TTIs than female donors 144(1.2%).The prevalence of TTIs in this study showed higher prevalence among donors 18 – 40 years of age (5.3%) compared to 41-60 years of age group. The rate of co infectivity in our study was 0.3% (33/12,326.

Conclusion: This study reflects that blood transfusion is one of the risk factors of spread of TTIs especially in developing countries where rapid test-based screening protocol tends to be used increasingly in blood banks. Therefore, proper donor selection and public awareness campaign targeting communities in poor countries will be an important measure to curb the spread of TTIs through blood transfusion.

Keywords: transfusion; HIV; HBV; HCV; syphilis; seroprevalence

References:

[1]. World Health Organization (WHO) Hepatitis B. Fact sheet Number 204.

[2]. United Nation Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Global Factsheet; World AIDS day getting to Zero.

[3]. World Health Organization (WHO) Global Health Observatory Data Repository Data on the size of the HIV/AIDS epidemic: Prevalence of HIV 1 among adults.

[4]. Mujeeb SA, Kausar A, Khalid M. Seroprevalence of HBV, HCV, and HIV infection among college going voluntary donors. J Pak Med Assoc 2000; 50:269-70

[5]. Manzoor I, Hashmi N, Daud S: Seroprevalence of transfusion transmissible infections (TTIS) in blood donors. Biomedical 2009, 25:154-158.

[6]. EL-Gilany AH and EL-Fedawy. Blood borne infections among student voluntary blood donors in Mansoura University, Egypt. East Mediterr Health J. 2006 Nov; 12(6):742-8.

[7]. Moore A et al. Estimated risk of HIV transmission by blood transfusion in Kenya. Lancet. 2001 Aug 25; 358(9282):657-60.

[8]. Sentjens R et al. Prevalence and risk factors of HIV infection in blood donors and various population subgroups in Ethiopia. Epidemiol Infect. 2002 Apr; 128(2):221-8.

[9]. Schreiber GB, MP Busch, SH Kleinman, JJ Korelitz. The risk of transfusion transmitted viral infections- The retrovirus epidemiology donor study. N Engl J Med. 1996 Jun 27; 334(26):1685-90.

[10]. Isselbacher KJ, JR Wands, 1991. Neoplasms of the Liver, In Harrison’s principles of Internal Medicine. 12th Ed. New York

[11]. Ejele OA, Erhabor O, Nwauche CA. The risk of transfusion-transmissible viral infections in the Niger-Delta area of Nigeria. Sahel Medical Journal. 2005; 8(1):16-19

[12]. Bhatti FA et al. Anti-hepatitis B core antigen testing, viral markers, and occult hepatitis B virus infection in Pakistani blood donors: implication for transfusion practice. Transfusion. 2007; 47(1):74-79. This article on PubMed

[13]. Abdalla F, Mwanda FO,Rana W. Comparing walk-in and call-responsive donors in a national and a private hospital in Nairobi. East Afr Med J. 2005 Oct;82(10):531-5.

[14]. Matee MI et al. Prevalence of transfusion-associated viral infections and syphilis among blood donors in Muhimbili Medical Centre, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. East Afr Med J. 1999 Mar; 76(3):167-71.

[15]. Alavian SM and Fallahian F. Epidemiology of Hepatitis C in Iran and the world. ShirazE-Medical Journal. Oct-2009;10(4)

[16]. Elfaki AM, Eldour AA and Elsheikh NM. Sero-prevalence of immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B and C and syphilis among blood donors at ElObeid Teaching Hospital, West Sudan. Sudan Journal of Medical Sciences. 2008;3 (4):333-338

[17]. Erhabor O, Nwoka E, and Adias TC. Seroprevalence of Treponema palladium infection among blood donors in a resource-poor setting in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. Africa Sanguine.2007; 10(1):19-21

[18]. Zohreh A, Mazyar G, Bashir H, Sherun A and Seyed MA. Zero prevalence of syphilis among blood donors in Tehran, Iran. Transf Today. 2005; 64:24

[19]. Adjei AA, Kudzi W, Armah H and Adiku T. Prevalence of antibodies to syphilis among blood donors in Accra, Ghana. Jpn J Infect Dis. 2003 Aug; 56(4):165-7.