NoBlood

Source:
The Independant

Full Text Article:
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/hea...p?story=611478

Big increase in HIV-positive blood donors sparks fears

The Independent (London, England); 2/16/2005; Woolf, Marie

Byline: Marie Woolf Chief Political Correspondent

THE NUMBER of blood donors found to be HIV positive has increased dramatically in England and Wales to the highest level for 16 years, internal documents obtained under the Freedom of Information laws show.

The rise in HIV-infected donations - the highest since 1987 - means that the chance of contaminated blood reaching patients needing transfusions has doubled. In 2003, 42 people who gave blood were found to be unwittingly carrying the HIV virus - a two-fold rise in the prevalence of HIV-infected blood compared to 1997-2002.

The papers show that the National Blood Service has detected more than 500 HIV carriers through its screening programme in the past 17 years. It immediately destroyed their blood and informed them they were carrying the virus.

But it is so concerned about "the significantly higher prevalence and incidence of HIV in new and repeat blood donations" in 2003 that it urgently . . . http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/hea...p?story=611478

Would anyone tell me what the window-period is when an HIV/AIDs carrier gives blood and it goes undected because of that "x" amount of time of that window-period?

Hope my question makes sense.

Thank you in advance!