PREVALENCE AND CIRCULATING GENOTYPES OF PARVOVIRUS B19 AMONG ADULT SICKLE CELL DISEASE PATIENTS AND BLOOD DONORS IN BAHRAIN

Abstract

Parvovirus (PV) is asingle-stranded DNA virus with a non-enveloped nucleus having a size of18-26nm. It comprise 60 structural proteins which are of two types. PV B19transmits through respiratory droplets or blood transfusion but some nosocomialinfections also give a chance to PV B19 for causing an infection. The study was particularlyconducted on Sickle Cell Anemia (SCA) patients and focuses on the determinationof parvovirus among Bahraini population by relying on their clinical status.Three groups have been taken for the serological study of PV B19. Moreover, around100 healthy blood donors were taken in which both the males and females wereincluded. However, samples were taken from the emergency unit of SalmaniaMedical Complex (SMC) and Ibrahim Khalil Kano Center (IKKC). It is acohort study based on total 250 people among which 150 were SCA patients, and100 were healthy individuals. The findings reveal that approximately 40%patients suffered from VOC whereas, only 20% were detected in SCA patients withNon-Vaso-Occlusive Crises (NVOC). It was observed that the percentages wererelatively same in both the male and female groups i.e. 33.2%. The percentagefor the control group was 33.6 % in which 84 males and 16 females wereincluded. Parvovirus is a pathogenic virusand sometimes considered as life-threatening specifically for those individualswho have SCA due to which a risk of transient aplastic crisis increases. Thisvirus is only associated with those patients who have some haematologicaldisorders such as haemolytic anaemia and erythro-cytopenia. It is observed thatjust because of inappropriate features of testing the risk of PV B19 infection can increase. Aneffective screening test must be performed in the future to reduce the risk ofPV B19 infection.