Blood donation Nile fever scare

BLOOD donors in Spain are being asked if they have been in the provinces of Cádiz, Huelva or Sevilla in the last four weeks.

The move follows the diagnosis of cases of West Nile Fever, a disease which is transmitted by a mosquito and makes infected blood dangerous if transfused to a patient with a weak immune system.

According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, three people in Sevilla tested positive for the infection last month, while horses at eques- trian breeding centres in Cádiz and Huelva are also reported to have been infected.

Health authorities in the region say the ban on donors from the three provinces is a precaution and will end in November when the mosquitoes that transmit West Nile Fever die off.

Four out of every five patients infected show no indications, while the remainder may experience flu-like symptoms.

Around one per cent may experience more serious complications, but children, the elderly and anyone suffering from serious immune deficiencies or with a preexisting condition such as HIV who is given contaminated blood could develop major complications.

Health authorities in the three affected provinces are now routinely testing donated blood for the virus, but elsewhere, donors who state they have been in any one of these areas are being asked to return in 28 days, a period equating to the incubation period plus a safety margin.