Prevalence and trends of hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, Human immunodeficiency virus 1, 2 and syphilis infections among blood donors in a regional transfusion center in Punjab, India: A 3 years study.

BACKGROUND

Accurate estimates of the risk of transfusion-transmitted infectious diseases are essential for monitoring the safety of blood supply and evaluating the potential effects of new screening tests.

OBJECTIVE

The aim was to determine changes over time in blood donor population infection rates of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1, 2) and syphilis.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

Changes in rates of HBV, HCV, HIV-1, 2, and syphilis infections were evaluated by comparing yearly prevalence rates for blood donors over 3 years, that is, between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2014. Serological tests were done according to the standard operating procedures and manufacturer's instructions and included the following: tests for hepatitis B surface antigen; antibodies to HCV and HIV-1, 2 and rapid plasma reagin test for syphilis.

RESULTS

Nearly 2.54 of the total screened blood donors were reactive for one of the four transfusion transmitted infections (TTIs) with higher prevalence in replacement (3%) than voluntary donors (2.3%) and in male (2.54%) than female (2.3%) donors. TTI tend to be more (54.7%) in younger population of 18-30 years. HCV infection is the most common of all TTI (50%).

CONCLUSION

The rising prevalence rates of HIV; HBV; HCV and syphilis among different groups suggests that blood transfusion is still very unsafe in this community and emphasis should be laid on donor education and donor self-exclusion, implementation of strict donor screening criteria, pre-donation counseling, and more sensitive screening methods. Furthermore, donors with a history of sexually transmitted infections should be totally excluded from all donations.