How common is diseases from Blood Transfusions?

Blood transfusions are a vital medical treatment. Many illnesses and diseases can be treated with this procedure and our ability to help those in need has resulted in countless lives being saved. Transfusion medicine has made leaps and bounds over the past century, but there are still many misconceptions surrounding blood transfusions. One of the biggest questions patients have is: how common are diseases from blood transfusions?

Did you know that a lot of healthy and young people are affected by diseases they have got from blood transfusions? It can be really unfortunate when you get a disease caused by the blood from another person. However, a number of precautions in the medical field can make this more likely.

But what if you get a disease from your blood transfusion? Is it possible?

The answer is yes. In fact, it’s not that uncommon at all. The CDC reports that more than 3000 people get diseases from blood transfusions every year in the United States alone. That’s more than 1% of all blood transfusions! So what exactly are these diseases, and how common are they?

Blood transfusions are one of the most common operations in the world. They’re also one of the only surgeries that can save your life.

There are three main types of disease-causing agents in blood transfusions:

• Bacteria,
• Viruses,
• Parasites.

Bacteria and viruses can be transmitted through any type of blood product red cells (which carry oxygen), platelets (which help to clot), or plasma (which contains proteins).

Parasites like malaria parasites can only be transmitted through red blood cells.

The most common bacterial infections caused by transfusions include sepsis (which affects your whole body), meningitis (which affects your brain and spinal cord), endocarditis (an infection around the heart valve), pneumonia (an infection in your lungs), osteomyelitis (an infection in the bone)

What is the risk of contracting diseases from a blood transfusion?

The risk of contracting a disease from a blood transfusion is very small and depends on the type of disease being transmitted. The most common way that people get HIV is by receiving blood products. This is because HIV can be transmitted through donated blood products if they are not tested for HIV before use. There are other types of viruses that can be transmitted through blood products, such as hepatitis C, which causes liver damage and cancer.

The chance of getting HIV from a blood transfusion is less than 1 in 1 million. The chance of getting hepatitis C from a blood transfusion is about 1 in 2 million.

Reasons:

Blood transfusions are a common treatment for many diseases, but they can also cause serious side effects.

The most common reason for receiving a blood transfusion is for anaemia (when you don’t have enough red blood cells).

Other reasons include:

• Surgery or injury
• Certain types of cancer
• Severe burns