PENNSYLVANIA Blood donations to be tested for West Nile virus

The test identifies the virus in people without symptoms, the Red Cross says.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Some of Pennsylvania's major blood suppliers are preparing to test donated blood for the West Nile virus as part of a government directive.
The American Red Cross Greater Alleghenies Region, based in Johnstown, will begin using a test Tuesday that can detect the blood-borne virus before a donor shows any symptoms. Central Blood Bank in Pittsburgh will begin screening donated blood July 7.
"It tests for the genetic makeup of the disease instead of the body's reaction to it," Red Cross spokeswoman Jennifer Mansfield said.
Some have no symptoms
Last year at least 23 people in America contracted West Nile virus through blood transfusions, but the 16 donors who passed along the disease didn't get sick. As a precaution, blood banks in Pennsylvania and across the nation refused to accept donations from anyone who had experienced symptoms, such as a headache, skin rash and fever, within the previous week.
Because only 20 percent of people who contract the virus show even mild symptoms of the disease, blood screening is viewed as a more effective way of testing for the virus. Officials stress it is not possible to get West Nile by donating blood.
The West Nile virus, commonly transmitted by a mosquito that feeds on the blood of an infected bird then bites a human, can lead to life-threatening illness. Last week, the state department of environmental protection found a mosquito pool that tested positive for the virus.
Jessica Seiders, spokeswoman for the state health department, said most people who get sick from the virus are people over 50 or who have weak immune systems.
"The huge factor that plays in is the strength of the person's immune system," Seiders said.
Nationwide testing
Within the next few weeks, all blood donated in the United States will be tested for West Nile, said John Gallagher, spokesman for Chiron Corp., an Emeryville, Calif.-based pharmaceutical company that developed a way to test healthy blood donors for the West Nile virus.
Gallagher said the test is considered experimental, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration could make it available for commercial use if it determines the test works well enough. Nine months ago, the FDA asked pharmaceutical companies to develop a way to screen blood for West Nile.
Donors whose blood tests positive for the disease will be notified and advised to see a doctor. Those donors will not be allowed to give blood for at least 28 days and will need to provide a blood sample to be reinstated as a donor, Mansfield said.