Acute human cytomegalovirus infection among voluntary blood donors in the Lake Victoria zone blood transfusion centre: should it be considered in screening?

Human Cytomegalovirus Seroprevalence Among Blood Donors in the Madinah Region, Saudi Arabia

Background and objective

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), a double-stranded DNA virus of the Herpesviridae family, can remain latent for long periods of time. HCMV may cause severe illness in immunocompromised patients and is associated with congenital anomalies. This study aimed to determine the anti-HCMV immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgM antibody seroprevalence among blood-donating Saudi men in the Madinah region.

Methods

A total of 375 blood-donating Saudi men were recruited from the Central Blood Bank in Madinah, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), and stratified into three age groups: 18-30, 31-40, and 41-61 years. Anti-HCMV IgG and IgM antibody levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to correlate antibody levels with variables.

Results

Most of the tested samples (95.73%, n=356) were positive for anti-HCMV IgG antibodies, but only 1.6% (n=6) were positive for both IgM and IgG antibodies, and all of them belonged to the age groups of 31-40 and 41-61 years. A strong inverse correlation was found between anti-HCMV IgG antibody levels and age (r=−0.51, p<0.0001). Additionally, there was an inverse correlation between anti-HCMV IgG antibody levels and body mass index (BMI) (r=−0.11, p=0.036). No correlations were found between anti-HCMV IgG levels and hemoglobin levels or blood groups of the participants.

Conclusions

Blood-donating Saudi men in Madinah had a high seroprevalence of anti-HCMV IgG antibodies, indicating previous viral exposure. Age and BMI might influence the humoral immunologic memory response against HCMV, which appears to be endemic in Madinah.

Cytomegalovirus seroprevalence among blood donors: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

Screening for cytomegalovirus (CMV)-specific antibodies is not routine in some settings. Thus, transfusion of blood products poses risks for susceptible individuals.

Objectives

To investigate the global pooled CMV seroprevalence among volunteer blood donors.

Methods

This systematic review and meta-analysis was performed according to PRISMA guidelines. The databases searched included Embase, Google Scholar, Medline, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library. Data were extracted independently and analyzed using STATA version 11.

Results

The global seroprevalence of CMV IgG, CMV IgM, and both CMV IgM and IgG was 83.16% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 78.55–87.77%, I² = 99.5%), 13.77% (95% CI: 11.59–15.95%, I² = 98.8%), and 23.78% (95% CI: 10.50–37.06%, I² = 98.7), respectively.

Conclusion

The global seroprevalence of CMV was high among blood donors. Therefore, regular CMV screening should be conducted to identify CMV-seronegative blood donors.

Challenges in transfusion-transmitted infection screening in Sub-Saharan Africa

In Sub-Saharan Africa, high clinical demand for transfusion faces endemic bloodborne infections and limited resources. Blood screening for transfusion-transmitted bloodborne pathogens is the cornerstone of blood safety. Although there have been substantial improvements over the years, challenges in transfusion-transmitted infection screening that have been identified repeatedly long ago still need to be addressed. Affordability and sustainability of state-of-the-art quality assessed serological and molecular assays, and associated confirmation strategies remain of real concern. In addition, limited resources and infrastructures hamper the development of adequate facilities, quality management, and staff qualification, and exacerbate shortage of reagents and equipment maintenance. It is also important to maintain effort in constituting pools of repeat voluntary non-remunerated donors. Alternative strategies for blood screening that take into account local circumstances might be desirable but they should rely on appropriate field evaluation and careful economic assessment rather than dogma established from high-resource settings.

Editorial

Nil.