At least 14 children, who underwent blood transfusions in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur have tested positive for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV on Monday, 23 October.
The children, who required blood transfusion after being diagnosed with Thalassemia, are now facing more health risks than ever.
All those infected are minors between the ages of 6-16 – belonging to Kanpur, Farrukhabad, Auraiya, Etawah, and Kannauj.
Seven kids have tested positive for Hepatitis B
Five kids have tested positive for Hepatitis C
Two kids have tested positive for HIV
Dr Arun Arya, Head of Paediatrics at the Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital, told Hindustan Times,
“The children are already battling a serious issue and are now at a greater health risk.”
How did this happen? Dr Arya said that there’s a possibility that the children received the blood during the “window period” – that is the period during which the infection cannot be detected in the donated blood.
Dr Arya also said that the blood transfusions happened locally at district/private hospitals in emergency situations, and that the doctors who performed the blood transfusion should have vaccinated the children against these infections too.
What next now? The children have been referred to Lala Lajpat Rai Hospita’s gastroenterology department and those who got infected with HIV have been referred to the hospital’s centre.
(With inputs from Hindustan Times)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)