Research finds dramatic increase in number of transfusion-transmitted babesiosis cases
Babesiosis is a potentially dangerous parasitic disease transmitted by ticks and is common in the Northeast and the upper Midwest. Babesia lives inside of red blood cells, meaning it can also be transmitted through a blood transfusion from an infected but otherwise asymptomatic blood donor.
Now a new study led by researchers at Rhode Island and The Miriam hospitals finds a dramatic increase in the number of transfusion-transmitted babesiosis cases (TTB), leading the investigators to call for a better screening test in blood donors living in areas of the country where babesiosis is prevalent. Their paper is published in an upcoming edition of the journal Transfusion, and is now available online in advance of print.
Infectious diseases specialist Leonard Mermel, DO, is the medical director of infection control for Rhode Island Hospital and corresponding author of the paper. He and his colleagues, Shadaba Asad, MD, a hospitalist at The Miriam Hospital (sister hospital to Rhode Island and also a Lifespan partner), and Joseph Sweeney, MD, director of transfusion services at Rhode Island and The Miriam hospitals, observed an increase in the number of TTB cases, and initiated a retrospective study to gauge the extent of TTB in Rhode Island.
Babesiosis became a reportable disease in Rhode Island in 1994. For the purpose of this study, cases of babesiosis reported to the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) between January 1999 and December 2007 were reviewed, along with information on blood donors from the Rhode Island Blood Center.