A recent report has revealed that fourteen children who have been undergoing blood transfusion for thalassemia have been found to be infected with HIV and Hepatitis B and C. Thalassemia is a hereditary blood disorder that leads to irregular hemoglobin levels. These children have been receiving blood transfusions at different public and private healthcare facilities in UP. Diagnostic tests for these infections have been performed at Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital in Kanpur. Children infected with HIV and Hepatitis B and C are in the age range of 6 to 16 years and belong to various parts of the state, such as Farrukhabad, Auraiya, Etawah, Kanpur, and Kannauj.
Seven out of 14 children have been diagnosed with hepatitis B; five of them have been infected with Hepatitis C and two children have tested positive for HIV. Health experts say that screening for these deadly infections is usually conducted on donated blood before the transfusion to assess the safety of the donated blood. Experts say that if these tests are performed only a short time after the virus has infected donors’ blood known as the window period, these viruses might not be detected. In this case, these tests to detect these pathogens might have been ineffective. Health officials of the pediatric unit of the hospital believe that though the actual cause of these infections is unclear; these infections might have taken place during the blood transfusion.
Health officials investigating these infections say that doctors should have immunized these children against Hepatitis B. As of now, children infected with Hepatitis have been referred to the gastroenterology department and two children who have tested positive for HIV have been sent to the referral center in Kanpur. Health officials are investigating the root cause of these infections under the Viral Hepatitis Control Program. District health officials say that these children are already fighting a severe health condition and now they are at a higher risk of HIV and Hepatitis.
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