Supplement Focuses on 68 EID Agents
A supplement on emerging infectious disease (EID) agents and their potential treat to transfusion safety will be included in the August issue of TRANSFUSION, the peer-reviewed journal of the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) and publication on transfusion medicine.
There are many emerging infectious diseases that could pose a treat to the population and this article allows the medical community to begin discussion, according to an AABB press release.
Members of the AABB identified and described 68 infectious agents included dengue and chikungunya viruses, Plasmodium species, Babesia and H1N1 influenza virus. For each of the 68 agents, background information, clinical features and characteristics specifically related to transfusion transmission are highlighted.
The findings describe and prioritize EID agents that have an actual or potential risk of transmission by transfusion and for which there is no implemented intervention. The concepts of emergence, how agents were assessed and prioritized and agents involved in bioterrorism are also discussed. Additionally, the agents are ranked according to the consensus opinion about their anticipated impact upon blood safety using scientific data and data related to the public perception of the agent.
For more information visit http://www.tranfusion.org/ and http://www.aabb.org/.