While the chances of getting HIV or hepatitis C from donated blood have been essentially eliminated thanks to enhanced screening, threats such as infectious diseases from abroad and new transfusion risks are raising safety concerns and limiting the supply of eligible donors.
Blood banks and regulators have responded by adding new protections, including changes that could affect 10-20 percent of female donors. Scientists have only recently learned that certain antibodies in the blood of women who have ever been pregnant can cause transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI). Though rare, TRALI is now the leading cause of transfusion-related deaths: It is blamed for 50-100 deaths each year. Blood banks have put in place plans to shift to 95 percent male plasma donors from 50 percent in some parts of the country for transfusion. The American Red Cross (ARC) is also developing ways to screen platelet donors for TRALI and divert women who test positive to donating whole blood only.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a test for Chagas disease, the blood-borne illness linked to a parasite that affects roughly 11 million people in Latin America. The infection is an increasing concern due to the rise in immigration from those countries.
Amid these concerns, there is a growing call to lift a longtime ban on gay men, who could increase the pool of donors. The ban applies to men who have had sex with another man even once since 1977. Citing testing advances they said make this restriction "medically and scientifically unwarranted," last year ARC, the American Association of Blood Banks and America's Blood Centers said the policy should be changed to allow donations by men who have not had sex with another man in the past year. However, FDA says men who have sex with men account for 25 percent of potential donors found to be HIV-positive.
We are providing the above information as a public service only. Providing synopses of key scientific articles and lay media reports on HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted diseases does not constitute endorsement. The above summaries were prepared without conducting any additional research or investigation into the facts and statements made in the articles being summarized, and therefore readers are expressly cautioned against relying on the validity or invalidity of any statements made in these summaries. This CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update also includes information from CDC and other government agencies, such as background on MMWR articles, fact sheets and announcements.
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up to 90 percent of those infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) have no symptoms at all
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it ranks second only to alcoholism as a cause of liver disease and is the leading reason for liver transplants in the United States.
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there is currently no vaccine for hepatitis C.
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In many cases, symptoms may not appear for up to 30 years.
Normally, HCV produces no symptoms in its earliest stages. If you do have symptoms, they'll generally be mild and flulike. They include:
Even if you develop chronic hepatitis from the hepatitis C virus, you may have few, if any, symptoms. In many cases, symptoms may not appear for up to 30 years. Sometimes, though, you may experience one or more of the following:
Hepatitis C can cause damage to your liver even if you don't have symptoms. You're also able to pass the virus to others without having any symptoms yourself. That's why it's important to be tested if you think you've been exposed to hepatitis C or you engage in behavior that puts you at risk.
Causes
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Blood transfusions
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Contaminated needles
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Tattooing and Body piercing
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Sexual activity
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