Seroprevalence and trend of human immunodeficiency virus among blood donors in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundBlood transfusion is one of the routine therapeutic interventions in hospitals that can be lifesaving. However, this intervention is related to several transfusion-related infections. The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is one of the major public health problems associated with blood transfusion. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to estimate seroprevalence and trend of human immunodeficiency virus among blood donors in Ethiopia.MethodsStudies on the prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus among blood donors published until 2017 were accessed by conducting a detailed search on PubMed, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, EMBASE and CINAHL databases using the keywords:-Seroprevalence AND trend AND HIV OR human AND immunodeficiency AND virus OR human immunodeficiency virus AND blood donors OR blood donors OR Ethiopia. The quality of each article was assessed using a modified version of the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Meta-analysis was carried out using a random-effects method. All statistical analyses were done using STATA version 11 software.ResultThe estimated pooled seroprevalence of human immunodeficiency virus among blood donors in Ethiopia was 2.69% (95% CI (1.79-3.58%)). The overall seroprevalence of human immunodeficiency virus infection showed a significant decline trend from 2004 to 2016.ConclusionThe overall seroprevalence of human immunodeficiency virus among blood donors in Ethiopia was high. Routine screening of donor blood for transfusion-transmissible infections is essential for ensuring the safety of blood transfusion.