Can I get zika through blood donation?
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Hello, 25 y/o female patient presenting to clinic with joint pain in her knees. She also complains of muscle pain in her lower extremities. She stated that pain started two days after she returned from the United States. She did not have any pain previous and does not remember doing anything that would hurt it. She also complained of a headache and feeling under the weather. She has been diagnosed with zika infection. I went to that clinic for blood donation. I am worried. Can I get zika through blood donation?
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@samik To date, there have been no confirmed transfusion-transmission cases of Zika virus in the United States. However, cases of Zika virus transmission through platelet transfusions have been documented. However most people infected with the Zika virus don’t show any symptoms, blood donors may not know they have been infected. Blood donor screening on the basis of a questionnaire, without a laboratory test, is insufficient for identifying Zika-infected blood donors in areas with active mosquito-borne transmission of Zika virus due to the high rate of asymptomatic infection.