Prevalence of antibodies to syphilis among blood donors in Accra, Ghana.

Several infectious diseases have been found to be associated with transfusion of blood and blood components. Reports from studies conducted in many African countries indicate a high incidence of blood-borne pathogens such as syphilis infections among healthy blood donors. The prevalence of syphilis antibodies in blood donors in Ghana is not known. This study was therefore conducted in order to determine the prevalence of antibodies to syphilis among blood donors seen between the months of January and March 2003 at the National Blood Transfusion Service, Accra area (Blood Bank) at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra, Ghana. The presence of antibodies specific for syphilis was tested using Venereal Disease Research Laboratory and particle agglutination test kit. A sero-prevalence rate of 7.5% was found. Our sample of blood donors was largely comprised of male subjects (500 out of 536 donors, and only 1 out of the 36 screened female donors was positive), making sex comparisons statistically undesirable. In both sexes, the age distribution of subjects positive for syphilis antibodies was from 19 - 54 (median age, 32) years. In conclusion, our results indicate that syphilis is prevalent among healthy blood donors in Ghana, and that there is a need to introduce the screening of donated blood for syphilis in Ghana.