Tuberculosis

Acceptability at Recruitment

QUALIFIED

Acceptability at CT / Work-Up

QUALIFIED

Individual at Risk

Recipient

Explanation of Condition

Infection, typically in the lungs, caused by the bacterium mycobacterium tuberculosis.

See also Tuberculosis

Guidance

Unacceptable

Currently infected

Less than 2 years from completion of treatment;

Otherwise may be acceptable following discussion with medical officer.

Justification for Guidance

There are no documented case reports of tuberculosis (TB) transmission via blood transfusion or HPC transplantation. However, TB is one of the most common bacterial infections transmitted via solid organ transplantation. There is also a known risk of reactivating pre-existing latent infection in HPC transplant recipients, which is mainly seen in countries with an indigenous risk of TB. The lack of reports of TB transmission via blood despite the known blood phase of TB infection and the worldwide prevalence of TB suggests that the risk of blood transmission – if it exists – must be extremely low. Extrapolating this assumption to HPC, however, should be done with caution because TB can infect bone and has been detected in bone marrow biopsies of infected patients. A recent study even suggests that bone marrow stem cells are an important reservoir of latent infection. In this context, the precautionary stance of the current 2-year deferral period following successful treatment of infection seems justified, and is consistent with widely-utilised blood donor selection guidelines (eg the Council of Europe Guide to the preparation, use and quality assurance of blood components).

Pseudonyms or Related Conditions

TB

Consumption

Version

Version 1, Edition 2

Date of Last Update

9 June 2016