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Kenyan Study Could Help Other African Countries Improve Hiv Blood-transfusion Strategies (p 657)
August 22, 2001A 1994 study which highlighted the problem of HIV-1 transmission from blood-transfusion programmes in Kenya-and resulted in positive government action-could help other African countries develop safer blood-transfusion strategies.
Little support for blood-safety programmes has been provided to less-developed countries over the past decade. The Kenya Ministry of Health did a collaborative multicentre assessment with Robert Janssen and colleagues from the Centres for Disease Control, Atlanta, USA. The aims of this study were to establish the risk of HIV transmission by transfusion in Kenya, to promote awareness of blood safety issues in a country with a mature HIV epidemic, and to identify methods to reduce the risk of HIV transmission by blood transfusion.
The investigators collected information and blood samples from all blood donors and pretransfusion samples from all recipients in six government hospitals in Kenya. Blood donations were screened for HIV according to standard practice in the hospital laboratories. Test results at a reference laboratory at the US Centres for Disease Control were compared with those of the hospital laboratories and risk of transfusion-associated HIV transmission was calculated.
The prevalence of HIV among blood donors was 6.4% and varied by hospital (range 2%-20%). HIV-test results were available for 1290 donor-recipient pairs. Of these, 26 HIV-positive donations were given to HIV-negative patients. The investigators estimated that 2% of transfusions transmitted HIV. Problems in the hospitals that contributed to transfusion risk included inconsistent refrigeration, data-entry errors, equipment failure, and lack of a quality-assurance programme.
Robert Janssen comments: "This rapid assessment provided important information for the development and implementation of programmes aimed at improving blood safety. Based on these results, the Kenya Ministry of Health identified support for the purchase and distribution of rapid HIV test kits and developed a national training programme to improve laboratory practices. Universal screening of all blood donations was emphasised at all hospitals. With an accurate assessment completed, and a national response planned, international aid funding was secured to implement training programmes, to improve recruitment of volunteer donors, to develop regional transfusion centres, and to develop a standardised quality-assurance programme. In these ways, this assessment helped to specify the areas that needed improvement and mobilise the resources and political commitment needed to address them. This rapid assessment may serve as an example other countries could use to assess the safety of their blood supply and to identify procedures to improve blood safety."
Lancet
The prevalence of HIV among blood donors was 6.4% and varied by hospital (range 2%-20%). HIV-test results were available for 1290 donor-recipient pairs. Of these, 26 HIV-positive donations were given to HIV-negative patients. The investigators estimated that 2% of transfusions transmitted HIV. Problems in the hospitals that contributed to transfusion risk included inconsistent refrigeration, data-entry errors, equipment failure, and lack of a quality-assurance programme.
Robert Janssen comments: "This rapid assessment provided important information for the development and implementation of programmes aimed at improving blood safety. Based on these results, the Kenya Ministry of Health identified support for the purchase and distribution of rapid HIV test kits and developed a national training programme to improve laboratory practices. Universal screening of all blood donations was emphasised at all hospitals. With an accurate assessment completed, and a national response planned, international aid funding was secured to implement training programmes, to improve recruitment of volunteer donors, to develop regional transfusion centres, and to develop a standardised quality-assurance programme. In these ways, this assessment helped to specify the areas that needed improvement and mobilise the resources and political commitment needed to address them. This rapid assessment may serve as an example other countries could use to assess the safety of their blood supply and to identify procedures to improve blood safety."
Lancet
HIV Current Events and HIV News RSSNew Synthetic Molecules Trigger Immune Response to HIV and Prostate Cancer
Researchers at Yale University have developed synthetic molecules capable of enhancing the body's immune response to HIV and HIV-infected cells, as well as to prostate cancer cells. Their findings, published online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, could lead to novel therapeutic approaches for these diseases.
Magnetic nanoparticles to simultaneously diagnose, monitor and treat
Whether it's magnetic nanoparticles (mNPs) giving an army of 'therapeutically armed' white blood cells direction to invade a deadly tumour's territory, or the use of mNPs to target specific nerve channels and induce nerve-led behaviour (such as the life-dependant thumping of our hearts), mNPs have come a long way in the past decade.
Global challenges and opportunities in fighting HIV/AIDS and neglected diseases
Responding to the HIV/AIDS pandemic and tackling so-called neglected tropical diseases are the focus of the November/December 2009 edition of Health Affairs.
Hepatitis B does not increase risk for pancreatic cancer
A Henry Ford Hospital study found that hepatitis B does not increase the risk for pancreatic cancer - and that only age is a contributing factor.
Cell phones become handheld tools for global development
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Scientists use world's fastest supercomputer to create the largest HIV evolutionary tree
Supporting Los Alamos National Laboratory's role in the international Center for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Immunology (CHAVI) consortium, researchers are using the Roadrunner supercomputer to analyze vast quantities of genetic sequences from HIV infected people in the hope of zeroing in on possible vaccine target areas.
Will genomics help prevent the next pandemic?
This week, the Public Library of Science, an open-access publisher, presents the "Genomics of Emerging Infectious Disease," a collection of essays, perspectives, and reviews that explores how genomics-with all its associated tools and techniques-can provide insights into our understanding of emerging infectious disease.
Science at the Petascale: Roadrunner Results Unveiled
The world's fastest supercomputer, Roadrunner, at Los Alamos National Laboratory has completed its initial "shakedown" phase doing accelerated petascale computer modeling and simulations of a variety of unclassified, fundamental science projects.
M. D. Anderson redefines screening guidelines for breast, cervical and colorectal cancers
Drawing on years of experience in cancer research and patient care, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center released today the most comprehensive, risk-based screening guidelines publicly available to date for breast, cervical and colorectal cancers.
Sperm may play leading role in spreading HIV
Sperm, and not just the fluid it bathes in, can transmit HIV to macrophages, T cells, and dendritic cells (DCs), report a team led by Ana Ceballos at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina.
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