Eam. Beckers et al., EVALUATION OF ANTI-HCV ELISA SEROPOSITIVITY IN VOLUNTARY BLOOD-DONORS- A PROPOSAL FOR DONOR COUNSELING STRATEGIES, Infusionstherapie und Transfusionsmedizin, 21(3), 1994, pp. 143-149
Objective: To evaluate the anti-HCV (hepatitic C virus) reactivity for
the development of an individual donor counseling strategy which woul
d prevent unnecessary donor deferment without compromising the safety
of blood products. Design: All donors, who were repeatedly reactive in
the Ortho HCV ELISA as well as the Abbott HCV EIA screening tests wer
e selected for follow-up testing. At follow-up three screening tests (
Ortho, Abbott, and UBI HCV EIA) and two confirmation tests (Riba 4 and
PCR HCV RNA) were performed. During the counseling interview risk fac
tors and medical history were recorded. Setting: Blood bank Zuid-Limbu
rg, Maastricht, the Netherlands; estimated donor population 17,500. Pa
rticipants: A total of 54 donors could be completely evaluated. Result
s: The participants could be divided into five different categories, r
equiring specific donor information and different blood bank policies.
The donors in categories 1 and 2 (n = 11) had false-positive reaction
s and were kept active. Category 3 and 4 donors (n = 28) showed indete
rminate results and were permanently or temporarily excluded. Finally,
in category 5 donors (n = 15) a HCV infection could be diagnosed on t
he basis of either Riba-positive or PCR-positive results. Conclusions:
An anti-HCV screening policy should include a careful evaluation and
confirmation of antibody reactivity. A strategy is suggested which all
ows an individual donor counseling, prevents unnecessary donor deferme
nt, and avoids unnecessary fear of seropositivity.