title: A comprehensive serological and supplemental evaluation of hepatitis B "seroyield" blood donors: A cross-sectional study from a tertiary healthcare center in India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The present study addressed the interesting findings of supplemental evaluation of hepatitis B "seroyield" donors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Each blood donor sample was tested for anti-human immunodeficiency virus type I (HIV-I)/HIV type II (HIV-II), HBsAg, and anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody by enhanced chemiluminescence method and subjected to individual donor-nucleic acid testing (NAT) for HIV-I, hepatitis B virus (HBV), and HCV. NAT test was performed using the eSAS system, Procleix Ultrio Assay, Novartis Diagnostics, CA, US. Confirmation of HBsAg was done using HBsAg Confirmatory Kit (Ortho Clinical Diagnostics, Johnson & Johnson, USA) and viral load assessment was done using Cobas TaqMan real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay (Roche Molecular Systems, Branchburg, NJ, USA). To provide information on the stage of infection, specimens were tested for anti-HBc total (IgG + IgM), anti-HBc IgM and HBeAg. HBeAg-negative samples were tested for anti-HBe antibody.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 60 hepatitis B seroyield donors which showed mean initial sample/cutoff of 1.6 with enhanced chemiluminescence assay were investigated further for confirmation of disease status. All 60 cases were confirmed positive with neutralization assay (VITROS HBsAg Confirmatory Kit) while no target was detected on viral load assessment with RT-PCR. Sixteen donors were HBeAg positive (4 IgM anti-HBc positive and 12 IgM anti-HBc negative) and 44 were IgM anti-HBc negative, anti-HBc total positive, and anti-HBe positive.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  About 7.7% of HBsAg positive and NAT nonreactive donors (nondetectable HBV DNA) could be potentially infectious (HBeAg positive), whereas rest of the donors were consistent with chronic HBV infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Transfusion Medicine, Jaypee Hospital, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India.
authors.forename: Prashant
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pandey
authors.affiliation: Department of Traansfusion Medicine, Medanta-The Medicity, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Aseem K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Tiwari
authors.affiliation: Department of Traansfusion Medicine, Medanta-The Medicity, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Ravi C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Dara
authors.affiliation: Department of Traansfusion Medicine, Medanta-The Medicity, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Geet
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Aggarwal
authors.affiliation: Department of Traansfusion Medicine, Medanta-The Medicity, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Ganesh
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rawat
authors.affiliation: Department of Traansfusion Medicine, Medanta-The Medicity, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Vimarsh
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Raina
keywords: Enhanced chemiluminescence assay; hepatitis B seroyield; supplemental evaluation