Risks
The most common infectious risk of blood transfusion is bacterial contamination of blood while it is in platelets that are stored at room temperature. However, this most common form of contamination is still extremely rare. Roughly 1 in 2000-3000 platelet transfusions are contaminated. Transfusion transmitted Sepsis (when tissue is present in bacteria) is much less common but can result in serious illness or even death. The increase caution and improved methods of storage and handling have lead to a decrease in blood contamination.
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(11) Blood Smear - Biology Online
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Currently those who receive blood transfusions have a very low risk of contracting a TTI. However there is still some risk due to either a mistake in the screening process or a donor who has just contracted the illness. If the donor had just contracted the illness, it would not have shown up in the questionnaire or the lab tests as the DNA hadn't duplicated enough times yet. HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV), the hepatitis C virus (HCV), and the human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV) are the four most common types of illnesses transmitted through blood transfusion. By this, it can be concluded that the most common form of microbe to be transmitted through blood transfusion is a virus.
1. (12) Prion - Whozoo, 2. (13) Virus - The Vaccine Reaction, 3. (14) Vibrio Vulnificus - Louisiana Fishing
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More well known Viruses, Prions, Bacteria, etc. such has HIV or HBV have extremely low rates of transmission through blood transfusions because of the extremely rigorous testing that the donated blood goes through for those specific viruses.
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The conclusion can be made that, for the most part, blood transfusions are safe and present an extremely remote threat.