Transfusion Transmissible Infections among Blood Donors at the Blood Bank of Medical College of Gwalior: A 5 Year Study

Introduction: Transfusion Transmitted Infections (TTIs) are a major problem associated with blood transfusion. Accurate estimates of risk of TTIs are essential for monitoring the safety of blood supply and evaluating the efficacy of currently employed screening procedures.

Aims: To determine the prevalence of transfusion transmitted infections among blood donors in greater Gwalior region and its surrounding areas i.e. central India and its comparison with other relevant studies.

Place and Duration of Study: Study was carried out at Blood Bank, Department of Pathology, Gajra Raja Medical College, Gwalior, India from January 2009 to December 2013 (5 year study).

Methodology: Total 67,123 blood units collected from blood donors were tested for transfusion transmitted infections (TTIs) i.e. HIV I & II, HBV, HCV,VDRL and Malaria parasite at Blood Bank as per guidelines of World Health Organization (WHO) for Asia Pacific region and Food and Drug Administration, Government of India.

Results: Out of 67,123 blood units studied, voluntary units were 61309(91.3%) and replacement units were 5823 (8.7%). In the present study total TTIs positive units were 2747 (4.09%) (p=0.000005). Amongst them HBV were 2360 (3.51%) (p=0.000005), HIV positive units were 91(0.13%), HCV were 161 (0.24%), VDRL were 114 (0.17%) and Malaria 21 (0.03%).

Conclusion: Our study concluded that amongst all the TTIs in the blood donors in Gwalior and its surrounding area, seroprevalence of HBV was significantly higher than other infections. It is also higher than similar studies conducted in other parts of India.