Transfusion-transmitted <i>Plasmodium</i> spp. infections and safety challenges for malaria in the Indian subcontinent: a systematic review.

ABSTRACT: Blood transfusion is a globally life-saving intervention, but blood-borne pathogens can threaten its effectiveness. While blood bags are systematically screened for viral and bacterial pathogens, parasite infections are generally overlooked. In this review, we analysed the current literature on transfusion-transmitted malaria (TTM) in India over the past five decades. This analysis is based on 122 studies involving more than 6.5 million individuals. The prevalence of Plasmodium parasitaemia in donors ranged from ∼0% to 0.87% by light microscopy and ∼0% to 2.3% by rapid diagnostic tests. The proportion of post-transfusion malaria (PTM) cases ranged from 0.8% to 6.8% across the studies. The risk of PTM is both time- and diagnosis method-dependent and relatively high in some regions of

SUBMITTER: Kojom Foko LP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12305612 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature