Impacto da mudança no método de triagem sobre a detecção de sífilis em doadores de sangue em um hemocentro
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30968/jhphs.2026.171.1438Abstract
Objective: To analyze the variation in the frequency of blood donors with reactive serology for syphilis at the Hemotherapy and Hematology Center of Espírito Santo (HEMOES), comparing the periods 2016–2017, when only non-treponemal tests were used, and 2019–2020, after the adoption of treponemal tests in serological screening. Methods: This is a cross-sectional, observational, and retrospective study based on the analysis of donor records from HEMOES during both periods. Statistical analyses, including descriptive and inferential approaches, were conducted using R software (version 4.1.2), with significance set at p<0.05 and a 95% confidence interval. Results: In the periods 2016–2017 and 2019–2020, the HEMOES blood network recorded 173,780 blood donations, of which 1,995 were reactive for syphilis. The Metropolitan Region concentrated the highest proportion of cases, followed by the Northern Region, both showing an increase after the change in the screening algorithm. The age groups 26–35 and 36–45 years accounted for most detections, with a shift in the profile in 2019. The implementation of the treponemal test resulted in greater sensitivity and an increase in identifications. Among coinfections, hepatitis B was the most prevalent, representing more than 80% of records in 2019–2020. Conclusion: The study findings indicate that adopting the treponemal test as the initial screening method improved the capacity to identify syphilis among blood donors in the network, reinforcing its relevance for transfusion safety. Nevertheless, diagnostic confirmation with non-treponemal tests remains essential to differentiate active infections from serological scars.
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