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5 children suffering from thalassemia test HIV-positive in Jharkhand after alleged contaminated blood transfusion
According to a doctor, other factors, such as exposure to contaminated needles, could also lead to HIV infections.
In a case of medical negligence, as many as five children suffering from thalassemia in Jharkhand’s Chaibasa town have been detected HIV-positive, reported news agency PTI.
While four children were detected HIV-positive on Saturday morning, a day before, the family of a 7-year-old had alleged that HIV-infected blood was transfused by the local blood bank in Chaibasa town. Following this, a medical team was formed to determine how that child got contaminated blood.
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It was when this five-member team was investigating that four more children suffering from thalassemia were detected to be HIV-positive in the same town.
According to officials, the child who was first detected HIV-positive, has had transfusions of around 25 units of blood since he started visiting the blood bank. However, the child had tested positive for HIV over a week ago, PTI quoted district civil surgeon Dr Sushanto Majhee as saying.
He also added that other factors, such as exposure to contaminated needles, could also lead to HIV infections.
Irregularities detected in blood bank
The five-member team formed to probe what had happened was led by Jharkhand’s director of health services, Dr Dinesh Kumar. The team inspected Sadar hospital’s blood bank and the pediatric intensive care unit ward. They also collected some information from the children who are under-treatment.
According to Kumar, initial probe suggests that contaminated blood was transfused to a thalassemia patient.
"Initial investigation indicates that contaminated blood was transfused to a thalassemia patient. Some discrepancies were detected in the blood bank during the probe, and the officials concerned have been directed to resolve them," the report quoted him as saying.
Currently, there are 515 HIV-positive cases and 56 thalassemia patients in Jharkhand’s west Singhbhum district.
Apart from Kumar, the probe team also includes Dr Shipra Das, Dr S S Paswan, Dr Bhagat, District Civil Surgeon Dr Sushanto Majhee, Dr Shivcharan Hansda, and Dr Minu Kumari.
What is thalassemia?
According to US’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Thalassemia “is an inherited (i.e., passed from parents to children through genes) blood disorder caused when the body doesn't make enough of a protein called hemoglobin, an important part of red blood cells. When there isn't enough hemoglobin, the body's red blood cells don't function properly and they last shorter periods of time, so there are fewer healthy red blood cells traveling in the bloodstream.”
Some patients of thalassemia have to undergo regular blood transfusions.
(With inputs from PTI)
