Blood Donation Campaign @ 21-Sep-2008

There was good response to today's Blood Donation Campaign, 256 donors turned-up to support the event. It must be a timely boost to local blood banks, especially during the Muslim Puasa Month.

今天的献血运动的反应蛮不错，谢谢256位热血人士的响应。在回教徒斋戒月时期，本地血库都面对血液短缺，这些善心人士及时提高了血液的存量。

To our Muslim friends, Selamant Berpuasa.

疯牛症

非典型克雅二氏症（vCJD）就是人类的疯牛症，被普遍认为是经由食用感染变性蛋白质的牛肉所引起，在一九八○年代和一九九○年代初期特别常见于英国。

2004年英国通报，在二十多名因接受感染克雅二氏症捐血人的输血而被认定有遭感染危险的民众中，出现两名疑似遭感染病例。而七日发表的对第三名因输血死亡病患的死因分析报告，显示输血十分容易传播疯牛症。没有人知道过去有多少患者捐了血或仍在捐血。

三宗死亡案例的证据显示，疯牛症如果是通过输血传染，潜伏期仅为六至七年。通过吃问题牛肉而感染的疯牛症，潜伏期要长得多。第三位因输血而感染疯牛症的病人，他在接受手术七年后发病，开始出现身体摇晃倾向、记忆减退、手部颤抖和腿部严重疼痛等初期症状。该病人在一年后死去，年仅三十一岁。经大脑解剖、并在扁桃腺作蛋白质病原体检测后，证实是感染非典型克雅二氏症。

无症状潜在患者数千

疯牛症可经由血液传播要比吃到问题牛肉感染来得更容易，因为吃了受污染的牛肉之后，变性蛋白质还必须克服动物与人之间的「物种屏障」才会传播给人类。迄今，已有约一百六十人因食用受感染的牛肉而死于疯牛症，死者多数是年轻人。

当局为防止透过血液传播，已开始从美国进口血浆，禁止接受过输血和血液曾输给后来染上非典型克雅二氏症的人捐血，并清除所有的血液组成部分的白细胞，科学家相信最有可能携带变性蛋白质病原体的就是白细胞。

然而，不进行测试是无法鉴别所有捐献血液的，而且目前仍无法确知究竟有多少潜在的问题捐血者。非典型克雅二氏症的潜伏期是如此的长，以至足以有大量机会让一名捐血者携带著变性蛋白质病原体多年而不自知。

Mad Cow Disease (BSE) and Blood Donation

Mad Cow Disease or BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy). It's called mad cow disease because it affects a cow's nervous system, causing a cow to act strangely and lose control of its ability to do normal things, such as walk. Experts have found a link between BSE and a rare brain condition that affects people, called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Researchers believe that people who eat beef from cows that have BSE are at risk of developing a form of CJD.
CJD is caused by an abnormal type of protein in the brain called a prion. When people have CJD, cells in the brain die until the brain eventually has a "sponge-like" appearance. During this time, people with the disease gradually lose control of their mental and physical capabilities.
By November 2006, only 200 cases of this rare condition (vCJD) had been reported worldwide. Of these, most were identified in Britain. Several of the people diagnosed with the disease outside Britain — including two cases in the United States — had a history of exposure in Britain.
As There is no test for vCJD in humans that could be used to screen blood donors and to protect the blood supply, US and many parts of the world stipulated the following are not eligible to donate blood :
Live, visited or having blood transfusion in UK during January 1, 1980 through December 31, 1996.