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  • Title: Transmission of HIV through blood transfusion.
    Author: Okpara R.
    Journal: Afr Health; 1992 Jul; 14(5):15-7. PubMed ID: 12317770.
    Abstract:
    HIV transmission in transfused blood is a high risk in Nigeria. Although official government policy directs that all blood be screened for HIV, and that all blood donation should be voluntary, there is no legal enforcement of quality of the blood supply, and at least 85% of blood is estimated to be sold by professional donors. About 75% of blood banks are based in hospitals, mostly in major cities and teaching centers. The rest of the blood banks are unregulated small commercial operations without quality control or standard refrigerators. In small health facilities it is usual to infuse 1 unit at a time, suggesting that indications for transfusion are not emergencies, but rather anemias that could be corrected with nutritional replacement. These blood units are usually donated on request by families, but more often by professional donors managed by agents. People have misconceptions about the hazards of donating blood, such as the fear that donation will bewitch, poison them, or turn them into criminals, or that it is immoral. Blood donors who may be HIV positive are rarely traceable for counseling, since they often change their names and addresses. The Nigerian government is now deliberating in committee about forming a National Blood Transfusion Service, though the efforts of the Nigerian Society of Haematology and Blood Transfusion.
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