Table 1.
Key Emerging Infections That Are, or May Be, Transmissible by Blood Transfusion
| Organism (disease) | Normal Transmission Route | Transmissibility by Transfusion/Transfusion Risk | Transfusion Cases in US | Treatment for Disease | Intervention for Transfusion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parasites | |||||
| Babesia | Ticks | Known/moderate | >50 | Yes | NA |
| Leishmania | Sandflies | Anectdotal | 0 | Partial | Q |
| Malaria | Mosquitoes | Known/low | 1–2 per year | Yes | Q, T (unlicensed) |
| T cruzi (Chagas) | Reduvid bugs | Known/low | 5 | Partial | T (unlicensed) |
| Bacteria | |||||
| Anaplasma (ehrlichiosis) | Ticks | Probable/infrequent | 1 (presumed) | Yes | NA |
| Gram+ & gram− species | Multiple | Known/High | 1:75,000 apheresis platelets | Partial | T |
| Spirochetes | |||||
| Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme disease) | Ticks | Theoretical | 0 | Yes | NA |
| Viruses | |||||
| Avian influenza | Respiratory, droplet | Theoretical | 0 | Partial | NA |
| Dengue (dengue fever) | Mosquitoes | Known/low | 0 (1 in Hong Kong) | No | NA |
| HHV-8 (Kaposi’s sarcoma) | Saliva, sexual contact | Probable/low | 0 | No | NA, (LR?) |
| Parvovirus B19 [erythrovirus] (aplastic crises, RBC aplasia) | Respiratory | Known/low | 3–6 | Yes | (T) |
| SARS-coronavirus | Respiratory, fecal-oral | Theoretical | 0 | No | Q |
| Simian foamy virus (No known disease) | Primate contact | Theoretical | 0 | No | Q, (LR) |
| TTV/SEN-V [circoviruses] (No known disease) | Parenteral | Known/high | Very frequent (up to 25% of recipients) | None required | NA |
| GBV-C/HGV [flaviviruses] (No known disease) | Parenteral | Known/high | Very frequent (up to 7% of recipients) | None required | NA |
| New variants of established agents (e.g. HBV, HIV) | Parenteral | Known/low | Rare | Partial | Q, (T) |
| Prions | |||||
| vCJD | Oral | Known | 0 (3 in England) | No | (F) |
| Chronic wasting disease | ? oral | Unknown | 0 | No | NA |
Abbreviations: NA, not available; Q, donor questioning; T, laboratory test; (T), test may be partially effective; (LR), leukoreduction thought to reduce infectivity, (F), affinity filters under development.