This book is a comprehensive resource for all practitioners and researchers involved in transfusion medicine.

Foreword Roger Y. Dodd; Preface; Acknowledgements; Glossary; Introduction John A. Barbara, Roger Eglin; Part I. Agents: 1. Hepatitis viruses Denis M. Dwyre and Paul V. Holland; 2. Anti-HBc Joan O'Riordan; 3. Herpes viruses Eleftherios C. Vamvaka and Gary E. Tegtmeier; 4. Retroviruses Brian C. Dow, E. W. Fiebig and Michael P. Busch; 5. Parvovirus B19 (human erythroviruses) Kevin E. Brown; 6. Emerging viruses in transfusion Jean-Pierre Allain; 7. Bacterial contamination in blood and blood components Carl P. McDonald and M. A. Blajchman; Annexe, Syphilis Brian C. Dow; 8. The protozoan parasites David A. Leiby and Silvano Wendel; 9. Prion diseases Marc L. Turner, Patricia E. Hewitt, Moira Bruce and James W. Ironside; Annexe, Testing for prions David Anstee and Gary Mallinson; Part II. Selection and Testing: 10. Blood donor selection and qualification Virge James; 11. Current serological methods of testing and automation Peter D. Rogan; 12. Confirmatory testing and donor readmission Alan D. Kitchen and Brian C. Dow; 13. The strategy for applications of nucleic acid testing Paul R. Grant and Richard S. Tedder; 14. Nucleic acid testing, general view W. Kurt Roth; 15. Nucleic acid testing, the US approach Susan L. Stramer; 16. Nucleic acid testing, the English approach Roger Eglin; 17. Quality in the screening of donations for transfusion transmissible infections Alan D. Kitchen and John A. Barbara; 18. Microbiological blood testing and new technologies Juraj Petrik; 19. Processing and components, Leucodepletion and pathogen reduction Rebecca Cardigan, Chris Prowse and Lorna M. Williamson; 20. Fractionated products Peter R. Foster and Carol Bienek; Part III. Surveillance, Risk and Regulation: 21. Serious hazards of transfusion (SHOT), Haemovigilance Elizabeth M. Love; 22. Investigation of post transfusion infection Patricia E. Hewitt and Chris Moore; 23. Notification of donors with significant microbiological test results Patricia E. Hewitt and Chris Moore; 24. Researching the natural history of transfusion transmitted infections, the UK hepatitis C national register Helen Harris; 25. How to assess risk, prospective studies and calculations Kate Soldan and Katy Davison; 26. Risk management Arturo Pereira; 27. The regulatory environment in Europe Virge James; 28. Blood safety in developing countries Jean-Pierre Allain, Elizabeth Vinelli and Yasmin Ayob; Index.