ISSN: 2642-6145
Authors: Alsayed A, Zaher A, Yunus M*, Ibrahim A and Aldossary NJ
Objectives: This study aimed to examine the prevalence of Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I and II (HTLV-I & II) and the cruciality of donated blood before transfusion in the blood banks in the Eastern Province of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study collected data from all blood donors over the period of 12 years (January 2008 to January 2020) from the blood bank database of King Fahad Hospital of the University (KFHU), Al Khobar, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, with the approval from Institutional Review Board, KFUH. The chemiluminescent micro-particle immunoassay (CMIA) has been the screening test and the Western Blot (WB) is the confirmatory test. Result: 55998 blood donor files were analyzed. The prevalence was 0.001% and sensitivity and specificity for CMIA screening test compared to standard test WB was 100% and 99.8% respectively. Difference in the prevalence of HTLV-I & II in donated blood between the two study groups using the CMIA test was negligible. A statistically significant difference (P<0.0001) was demonstrated with western blot. Conclusion: This study detects a low prevalence of HTLV-I/II infection among blood donors and a high sensitivity and specificity in the CMIA screening test. This urges the requirement of revised public health policies.
Keywords: Blood Bank; Human T-Lymphotropic Viruses; Prevalence; Saudi Arabia
