A day after the incident of transfusion of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis-infected blood to two patients at the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) at Burla came to fore, a four-member committee was formed on Thursday to probe the matter.
The committee, which is headed by Pathology Department head Dr Kailash Agarwal, was asked by VIMSAR Director Dr Sonamali Bag to submit its report within 72 hours. Meanwhile, the committee submitted a preliminary report to the Health Secretary on Thursday.
According to reports, the two elderly patients had been transfused with HIV and hepatitis-infected blood earlier this month. A 70-year-old person hailing from Redhakhol was admitted to the surgery ward of the hospital on June 9 due to stomach pain. He underwent operation on June 13. Due to lack of haemoglobin in his blood, it became necessary to transfuse blood to his body during the operation.
A relative of the patient donated blood for the old man as there was lack of blood units at the hospital, and the former’s blood was transfused to the patient’s body. later, an ElISA test of the blood revealed that it was HIV-infected.
In the other case, a 60-year-old person of Brajarajnagar was admitted to the hospital on June 12 for leg surgery. The blood with which he was transfused was hepatitis-infected, a blood test report revealed.
The head of the hospital’s Transfusion Medicine Department Dr CR Prasad said, “There was lack of blood units in the blood bank for which the relatives of the patients had to donate blood. As blood transfusion was vital for the patients, rapid tests were done and transfusion was allowed after blood samples were tested HIV and hepatitis-negative.”
However, information at the e-blood bank website of the hospital revealed that the blood which was transfused to the person from Redhakhol was tested HIV-positive.