Screening for antibody to HTLV-III in blood donors of Liguria. Ligurian Committee for the Study of Infections Transmitted through Blood and Blood Products.
Anti-HTLV III had been detected in 12,689 serum samples collected within August 1985 from 12 Transfusion Centres of Liguria. In the course of the first test, carried out by ELISA using disrupted virions as antigen, 12,666 samples (99.81%) resulted non reactive; 14 (0.1%) belonged to the grey-zone and 9 (0.08%) were clearly reactive. The samples of the last two classes were tested again in the same way and, whenever the cases were suspect as positive, by Western-blot technique. All positive cases, but three, were linked with risk factors such as intravenous drug use or drug addicts partners. Even if the prevalence of blood donors anti-HTLV III positive resulted, on the whole, very low (0.063%), the investigations carried out prove the importance of regular screening of blood units for the prevention of HTLV III infection.
D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis*; D001782:Blood Donors; D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology; D017977:Deltaretrovirus / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000382:microbiology
D000914:Antibodies, Viral