Evaluation of the concomitant use of two different EIA tests for HIV screening in blood banks

Abstract

Our data do not support the use of two different, concomitant EIA screening tests for HIV. The great majority of HIV-positive donors have already seroconverted and will be detected using only a single EIA screening test. Only persons who are going through the process of seroconversion may be missed by using a single EIA test and detected using two EIAs for screening. To screen out these individuals and decrease the residual risk of HIV transmission from the blood donated in our center, the use of other techniques, such as nucleic acid testing (NAT) or a p24 antigen assay, would be more effective.

Routine HIV screening among blood donors in Buenos Aires (Argentina): Results from six years’ experience and report of a single window-period donation

“…Our total rate of HIV repeatedly reactive donors (0.3623%), including HIV Ab and/or p24 Ag reactive donors, was similar to values reported by other centers in our city 12 and Brazilian cities 13,14 , but was higher than values reported by other blood banks in Argentina and the rest of Latin America [15][16][17][18][19] . The rate of confirmed HIV-infected donors (0.2084%) was intermediate among other public and private Latin American blood donation centers 13,17,20,21 , but much higher than rates from other countries with a repeat donor population, such as the USA and France 22 .…”

“…Among the group of true-positive HIV donors, a large number did not return after the mail citation or lied about their address. The low percentage of positive HIV donors that returned is similar to that observed by others 14 . It may be that the donors who did not return knew about or suspected their positive serological status and, nevertheless, came to the blood bank because of pressure by their family or work partners.…”

Prevalence, incidence, and residual risk of human immunodeficiency virus among community and replacement first‐time blood donors in São Paulo, Brazil

“…In Brazil, it is mandatory to screen blood units by concomitant use of two approved enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) for HIV antibodies. To define prevalence, a sample was considered positive for HIV if reactive by both assays, based on our previous study, which showed that 85 percent of samples reactive by two EIAs test positive on Western blot (WB) 3 . During the study period, two of the following HIV kits were used in parallel: HIV‐1 and ‐2 antibody capture EIA (Ortho Diagnostic Systems, Raritan, NJ), an HIV‐1 and ‐2 antibody EIA enhanced with group O antigen (Vironostika HIV Uni‐Form II Plus O, Organon Teknika, Boxtel, the Netherlands), an HIV antigen and antibody combination assay (Murex, Dartford, UK), or an HIV‐1 EIA (Embrabio, São Paulo, Brazil).…”

Importância dos testes sorológicos de triagem e confirmatórios na detecção de doadores de sangue infectados pelo vírus da hepatite C

“…A baixa adesão ao tratamento, além de preocupante e merecer análise mais profunda, tem sido observada também em outros serviços. 14,15 O índice de positividade da PCR de apenas 34,7%, apesar de abaixo do encontrado por Kim et al 6 (57,1% em 354 doadores com anti-HCV positivo), é superior aos achados de Tuker et al 16 na África do Sul, onde a prevalência de anticorpos anti-HCV foi de 0,4% e, destes, apenas 13,7% tiveram confirmada a presença do vírus. No Brasil, estudos realizados no Distrito Federal e em Goiânia relataram índices de positividade no teste confirmatório em doadores com teste de ELISA reagente para hepatite C de 71,9% e 82,0% respectivamente.…”