Blood transfusions and disease

I read that I received blood transfusions from a race group that is highly diseased, especially HIV. I am wondering if there is extensive screening before blood donations. Does anyone know? I will probably try to get a HIV test.

Among the diseases than can be transmitted via transfusion are:

* HIV-1 and HIV-2
* Human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2)
* Hepatitis C virus
* Hepatitis B virus
* West Nile virus All units of blood in the U. S. are screened for this virus.
* Treponema pallidum (the causative agent of syphilis, usually used as more of a screening test for high risk lifestyle, the last case of transfusion transmitted syphilis was in 1965.)
* Malaria - Donors in the United States and Europe are screened for travel to malarial risk countries, and in Australia donors with a potential malarial exposure are screened for malarial antibodies.
* Chagas Disease - A screening test has been implemented for this disease in the United States, but is not yet required as Chagas disease is rare outside of South America.
* variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease or "Mad Cow Disease" has been shown to be transmissible in blood products. No test exists for this, but various measures have been taken to reduce risks.
* Some medications may be transmitted in donated blood, and this is especially a concern with pregnant women and medications such as Avodart and Propecia.
* Cytomegalovirus or CMV is a major problem for patients with compromised immune systems and for neonates, but is not generally a concern for most recipients.

where you at ?Haiti? other wise i wouldnt worry.. they learned their lesson mostly back in the 80's. lost a lot of money in lawsuits. the y screen very well now. i too would be curious as to how you would know from whom the blood came from. i have received about 8-10 units over the years and there was never a identifier on the bag other than a number and a bar code to track where it came from and where it went.

People who donate fill out a form with questions that help to identify if they take part in high-risk behavior and if so, how recently. In terms of blood donation, "high risk" means anything from sexual activity to travel outside the country.

Blood is tested for HIV, etc. as you can see from your own list that you posted. No test is 100% accurate (say, 99.99%) and some diseases cannot be detected shortly after infection. Eliminating people with recent risk indicators helps to further decrease that .01% risk. Some risk indicators get you banned for life.

You should be comfortable that the US blood supply is safe. If you still want to get a test, that is your choice. I am pretty sure you will have to pay for it out of pocket, or I guess you could find a free clinic to do it.

As an aside, blood donation records are kept indefinitely. If by chance someone is diagnosed with HIV after donating--even a decade later--the people who received their blood are notified so that they can be tested, if they want to. Obviously, this happens very rarely. I only know because I have a family member who works in blood banking.

You can probably convince your doc to test for HIV pretty easily, it's a valid request considering your medical history. I've had family members request the test after transfusions and the insurance companies paid without a problem.

Valley Fever and Lyme Disease can also be transmitted during transfusions and neither is routinely screened for. I've had both and I am considered eligible to donate based on the questionnaire because I am considered cured of both diseases. I won't donate because I don't think it is right for me to possible infect someone with either of these diseases. I just push my other family members to donate regularly because I can't.

I had to have blood transfusions during and after major surgery, it worried me to sign the form I felt bullied into it by my husband to be honest, it worried me for months afterwards also but he would tell me it saved my life. He used to give blood but here in NZ they don't want anyone donating who lived in the Uk before the 80's because of the mad cow disease.
Tess