Clinical profile of transfusion-related human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in a tertiary care hospital in South India

Background: Transfusion-related infection is an important mode of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission. There are very few reports in the literature on transfusion-related HIV from India. Methods: Retrospective study of clinical profile of patients with transfusion related HIV infection presenting to a tertiary care hospital in South India between May 1999 to December 2011. Results: Among the 1332 records of HIV positive patients reviewed, 80 (6 %) had transfusion-related HIV infection; their mean age was 32.2 ± 12.2 years; there were 47 (58.8%) women. Sixty nine patients (86.3%) were infected with HIV- 1, while 11 patients (13.8%) were infected with HIV-2 The average number of units of blood transfused was 2.8. The indications for transfusion were perioperative (n=37, 46.3%); haematologic disorders (n=15, 18.8%); trauma (n=9, 11.3%); upper gastrointestinal bleed (n=3, 3.8%); miscellaneous (n=3, 3.8%) and diagnosis not clear at the time of transfusion (n=13, 16.3%). Twenty six of the 64 patients (40.6%) had CD4+ count less than 200 cells/mm3 ; 32 patients (40%) were receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy. Tuberculosis was the most common opportunistic infection. Conclusions: Transfusion-related HIV infection, especially due to HIV-2 remains a significant problem in India even till recently; females seem to be more often affected probably due to the more frequent need for blood transfusion in them due to gynaecologic and obstetric reasons.