Bloodborne infections among student voluntary blood donors in Mansoura University, Egypt

We carried out a retrospective study on student voluntary blood donors in Mansoura University, Egypt. Serum samples were tested for HBsAg, anti-HCV, anti-HIV-1 and anti-HIV-2 as well as syphilis. About 7% of students had . 1 of the diseases tested for. Prevalence of HBsAg, anti-HCV, anti-HIV-1 and anti-HIV-2, and syphilis were 4.3%, 2.7%, 0.0% and 0.05% respectively. Significantly more males than females tested positive for HBsAg. Anti-HCV was significantly higher among rural than urban students. Volunteer student donors are a good source of safe blood. With proper selection of donors, the number of blood units discarded can be minimized.