Transfusion-associated hepatitis before the screening of blood for hepatitis risk factors.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The true incidence of transfusion-associated hepatitis (TAH) before blood screening is unknown. Our aims were to reevaluate blood recipients receiving unscreened blood and analyze hepatitis viruses circulating more than 45 years ago.

Study design and methods

Cryopreserved serum samples from 66 patients undergoing open heart surgery in the 1960s were reevaluated with modern diagnostic tests to determine the incidence of TAH and its virologic causes.

Results

In this heavily transfused population receiving a mean of 20 units per patient of predominantly paid-donor blood, 30 of 66 (45%) developed biochemical evidence of hepatitis; of these, 20 (67%) were infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) alone, four (13%) with hepatitis B virus (HBV) alone, and six (20%) wi

SUBMITTER: Engle RE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5498987 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature