Blood Donation and Prevalence of Bloodborne Infections in a Clinic in Luanda, Angola Donación de sangre y prevalencia de infecciones transmitidas por la sangre en una clínica de Luanda, Angola

Background: Many African countries lack an adequate supply of safe blood and have no reliable records on the prevalence of bloodborne infections. Objectives: To characterize blood donation in a clinic in Luanda and to determine the cause of rejection of candidates to blood donation and the prevalence among them of infections to be researched. Methods: A retrospective and descriptive study was conducted at the Multiprofile Clinic in Angola. We included 8 043 candidates to blood donation who performed this activity between 2005 and 2010. The variables analyzed were: type of donor, results of laboratory tests and donor’s assessment and causes of rejection. We applied the chi-square test to determine differences between the values of frequency, with a confidence interval of 95% (p <0.05). Results: 9.7% of donations were voluntary and the rest were provided by relatives. There were significant differences between the rates of rejection of candidates to donate by type of donation: 29.9% for relatives and 6.8% for volunteers. The most common cause of rejection was the positive result of the surface antigen test for hepatitis B both in relatives and in occasional volunteers. Among regular volunteers malaria and non-infectious causes prevailed. Differences in the prevalence of infections in different types of donors were demonstrated. Conclusions: The prevalence of infections that can be transmitted through blood is high. Volunteer donors present the lowest risk but they are also the smallest group of donors and the hardest to find. Fundamento: muchos países africanos carecen de un suministro adecuado de sangre segura y no tienen registros fiables sobre la prevalencia de infecciones transmitidas por la sangre. Objetivos: caracterizar la donación de sangre en una clínica, determinar las causas de rechazo de candidatos a donar y la prevalencia entre ellos de las infecciones que se pesquisan. Métodos: estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo, realizado en la Clínica Multiperfil de Angola. Se incluyeron 8 043 candidatos a donar sangre que se presentaron entre los a os 2005 y 2010. Las variables analizadas fueron: tipo de donante, resultado de los estudios de laboratorio y de la evaluación al donante, causas de rechazo. Se aplicó la prueba chi cuadrado para determinar diferencias entre los valores de frecuencia, con un intervalo de confianza del 95 % (p <0,05). Resultados: el 9,7 % de las donaciones fueron voluntarias y el resto familiares. Hubo diferencias significativas entre las tasas de rechazo de los candidatos a donar según tipos de donación: 29,9 % en las fam