SECONDARY-SCHOOL STUDENTS - A SAFER BLOOD-DONOR POPULATION IN AN URBAN WITH HIGH HIV PREVALENCE IN EAST-AFRICA

We evaluated the enrolment of secondary school students as voluntary u nremunerated blood donors in a city where the HIV-1 prevalence among t he adult population is 11.8%, Between 1st July, 1992 and 1st December, 1993, consecutive blood donors were screened for anti-HIV-1, TPHA, HB sAg and anti-HBc. Test results were related to age, sex, voluntary or relative donor status, 525 (22.4%) of 2345 were voluntary donors aged 24 years or less and 529 (29.6%) of 1820 of the relative donors were o f the same age group, Voluntary donors had statistically significant l ower prevalence rates of anti-HIV-1, TPHA, and anti-HBc, 1.5%, 2.1% an d 50.2% respectively, compared to relative donors of the same age grou p, 4.7%, 9.0% and 70.3% respectively, We conclude that secondary schoo l students constituted a safer donor population, The student populatio n offered the additional advantage of being easily accessible for dona tion and lesser blood units needed to be discarded, For a blood transf usion centre in an urban settlement, recruitment of secondary school s tudents as voluntary unremunerated blood donors should be considered a s a cost-effective strategy.