Frequency of Transfusion-Transmissible Infectious Diseases Among Blood Donors at Akhter Saeed Trust Hospital Lahore, Pakistan

Abstract

Background&Objectives:Blood transfusion is an essentiallifesaving treatment.The unsafe blood transfusion
practices are one of the reasons of spreading transfusion-transmissible infections among individuals. It is
necessary to screen all donated blood units for HBV, HCV, HIV, VDRL, and MP. The objective of this study
was to assess the frequency of transfusion-transmissible infectious diseases among donors in a trust hospital
of Lahore.
Methods: It was a cross-sectional study which included 9114 blood donors who attended Akhtar Saeed Trust
Hospital Lahore from January 2020 to September 2022. After informed consent, 3-5 ml of venous sample was
drawn fromdonors using aseptic technique. Screening of blood was done byChemiluminescence immunoassay
(Maglumi-800) for HBV, HCV, HIV and VDRL. The MPwas confirmed by peripheral blood picture on slide.
Positive results of HBV, HCV, HIV and VDRL was calculated using manufacturer's guidelines and cut-off
values.
Results: The mean age of participants was 27.8 ± 12.1 years. The number of volunteer and replacement donors
were 961 (10.54%) and 8153 (89.45%) respectively. The total number of positive donors for transfusiontransmissible infectious diseases were 591/9114 (6.48%). The sero-positivity wasfound to be 170/9114 (1.9%)
for HBV, 324/9114 (3.7%) for HCV, 33/9114 (0.4%) for HIV, 64/9114 (0.7%) for VDRL, and 0/9114 for MP
respectively.
Conclusion: We found a low risk of transfusion-transmissible infectious diseases but the availability of safe
blood is contingent on screening tests and appropriate donor selection.