""The East African" 16 th February, and from "New Vision" 17 th February: Kampala - Uganda is experiencing a serious blood shortage as a result of El Nino-induced epidemics of malaria and other fevers that have spread to all areas of the country since last November.
Health officials say demand for blood has trebled in the past three months. The director of the Uganda Blood Transfusion Services/Nakasero Blood Bank, Dr Peter Kataha, said that an increase in blood collections had not been able to keep pace with rising demands for transfusions, especially among children and expectant mothers.
Said Dr Kataha: "There's a shortage of blood across the country. We are just overwhelmed. There is an extraordinary increase in blood transfusions," he said. "Our main problem now is children and expectant mothers because they are the ones who are succumbing to malaria. The situation is bad because the usage of blood has more than trebled because of the epidemic of malaria." Pregnant women and children, who have lower immunity and were thus more susceptible to malaria, were consuming 75 per cent of blood collected by the bank. "More than 50 per cent of the blood we collect is used by children because they are the main victims of malaria and 25 per cent is used up by women who have got complications in childbirth and the other 25 per cent for accident victims and other emergencies."
Dr Kataha said the situation had worsened following the heavy El Nino rains experienced from last November, which were accompanied by cholera and fever pandemics which caused anemic conditions in sufferers and hence need for more blood. .."-- Martin Hugh-Jones <mehj2020@vt8200.vetmed.lsu.edu> VIA ProMED-mail <promed@usa.healthnet.org>