ABSTRACT
The emergence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as a transfusiontransmitted virus in the early 1980s caused great concern about the safety of the blood supply. Since that time the introduction of improved donor screening and testing has reduced the risk of developing a transfusion-associated HIV infection in the United States to a very low level. The risk of transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) is similarly very low today, although it is 5-to 10-fold higher than the risk of HIV (1).
