Property | Value |
Name | Prevalence of HIV infections in Children with Sickle Cell Anaemia in Port Harcourt, Nigeria |
Description | Research article:- * I.O.George, A.I.Frank-Briggs Department of Paediatrics, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Nigeria.
Abstract:- Background: Children with sickle cell anaemia are often treated with blood transfusion which is an important route of transmission of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of HIV infection among previously transfused children with sickle cell anaemia at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital(UPTH), Port Harcourt, Nigeria Methods: This was a prospective study of sickle cell anaemia patients with previous blood transfusion (aged 6 months to 16 years) attending the paediatric haematology clinic of UPTH, Port Harcourt, Nigeria from January 2008 to December 2009. Results: There were a total of 118 patients with previous blood transfusion from January 2008 to December 2009. Out of these, 66 (55.9 %%) were males while 52 (44.1%) were females .The Mean age (± 1 standard deviation) was 2.7 ±2.6 years (range 0.5-16 years). Five (4.2%) of 118 patients were HIV-seropositive. The parents of these patients were HIV-seronegative. However, the HIV-seropositive patients are being followed up at the paediatric HIV clinic of our hospital after post-test counseling. Conclusion: The HIV-seropositive rate in this study is comparable with national estimates thus highlighting the continued risks of inadequate blood banking systems in Nigeria.
Keywords:- HIV INFECTION, Sickle Cell Anaemia, Blood Transfusion, Port Harcourt, Nigeria. |
Filename | George I O et. al..pdf |
Filesize | 188.37 kB |
Filetype | pdf (Mime Type: application/pdf) |
Creator | admin |
Created On: | 08/16/2011 00:00 |
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Maintained by | Editor |
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Last updated on | 09/04/2011 19:34 |
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