[Anti-hepatitis C Virus Screening to Prevent Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Blood Donors]

Before carrying out anti-hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) screening in blood donors, 433 plasma donors and 461 whole blood donors from 4 county plasmapheresis units and 5 city blood centres in Hebei province were surveyed. Anti-HCV positive rates were 55.5% and 10.2% in the two populations respectively. The anti-HCV positive rates also differed between qualified and unqualified donors. In qualified and unqualified plasma donors, they were 46.2% and 91.6% respectively and in qualified and unqualified whole blood donors 5.8% and 42.3% respectively. One year after anti-HCV screening, 793 plasma donors and 873 whole blood donors in 3 city blood centres and 4 county hospitals were surveyed, the anti-HCV positive rates in plasma and whole blood donors were 4.0% and 0.2% respectively. Compared with those before screening, there were 91.3% and 96.6% reduction respectively. The anti-HCV positive rate in voluntary donors was 0.5%. All the 86 first time donors were negative for anti-HCV before and after screening.