Serological ineptitude in blood banks: is there an association with sexually transmitted infections?

Introduction: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a serious public health problem, and some of these infections are also transmitted through blood transfusions. Objective: To identify publications in scientific journals in Brazil and in the world showing if there is an important association between serological inadequacy due to sexually transmitted infections traced in blood and blood products used for medical use. Methods: Systematic review of articles published from 2018 to 2023, using the LILACS, SciELO and PubMed databases, with a concomitant approach to the issues of serological disability and STI. Original studies or review articles in Portuguese, English and Spanish with Brazilian and international data were included. Editorial publications, letter to the editor, letter from the editor or comments on the subject were excluded. Results: The search found 571 articles, of which 106 (18.40%) met the inclusion criteria, that is, Serological disability and STI. In studies with international data, the prevalence of donors with hepatitis C ranged from 0.12 to 4.8%; with hepatitis B, from 1.3 to 8.2%; with HIV, from 0.0021 to 2.5%; with syphilis, from 1.73 to 2.4%; with HTLV, 0.66%; and with Chagas disease, from 0.017 to 2.76%. Among articles with Brazilian data, the prevalence of donors with seroreactive tests for hepatitis C ranged from 0.18 to 1.76%; with hepatitis B, from 0.05 to 7.9%; with HIV, from 0.03 to 0.82%; with syphilis, from 0.37 to 3.51%; with HTLV, from 0.02 to 0.3%, and with Chagas disease, from 0.8 to 0.5%. Conclusion: STIs are rarely discussed in the scientific literature in studies on serological inadequacy. In addition, a minority of articles were with Brazilian data. However, results show that STIs, despite being little discussed in the scientific literature in studies on the subject of serological inadequacy, have statistically significant percentages of seropositivity for STIs. Moreover, hepatitis C and B have a relevant seroprevalence, reaching 8.2% and 4.8%, respectively, in the international scenario. In Brazil, hepatitis B continues to occupy a prominent place with a seroprevalence of up to 7.9%. However, syphilis now holds a very important role, with a maximum percentage of 3.51%. More studies are needed for further reflection: although STIs are little addressed in studies about serological inadequacy in human blood banks, would they contribute to the maintenance and non-reduction of the general frequency of infections transmitted by blood transfusion?