TOKYO, Aug 13 (AFP) - The Japanese Red Cross Society told the health ministry Wednesday it would store blood plasma for longer after a ministry probe revealed thousands of units of tainted blood had likely been used, a report said.
The plan was submitted Wednesday following a ministry probe into suspected hepatitis B infections which found 6,419 units of possibly contaminated blood products had been shipped from since June 2002 through July 2003.
The ministry found the Red Cross was not recalling the blood of people who donated multiple times before testing positive for communicable viruses, even though earlier contributions could have fallen in the early "window period" where the virus can escape detection.
The Red Cross said it would store frozen blood plasma for two months before use starting next year, increasing the period to six months two years later, Jiji Press news agency said.
If a donor tested positive for HIV, hepatitis or other viruses, the longer storage period would increase the chance that previously donated blood products could be recalled before being used.
The society would also study overseas blood donor systems and consider reducing from 50 the number of blood samples it tests at one time, a technique blamed for causing false negative results, the report said.
030813
AF030856
©AFP 2003. All Rights Reserved. AFP articles contained on the AEGiS web site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without AFP's prior written permission. You may make one copy of each article for your personal, non-commercial use only; more copies would require AFP's prior written permission. obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP photos or materials. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP stories, photos or graphics. - http://www.afp.com/
AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2003. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
©1990, 2003 - AEGiS. AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content.
