Increasing trend of hyperbilirubinemia incidence in the blood donors population

Blood donors' screening has been performed during the last twenty years and it has reached a considerable post-transfusion hepatitis prevention due to disqualifying hyperbilirubinemic donors. Since 1981, AST screening has been combined with the attention paid to bilirubin--conditioned plasma colour. In the following years a steep exponential increase of hyperbilirubinemic donors incidence has been observed from 1.3% in 1983 and 1984 to 4.0% in 1988. The possibilities of a relationship to hepatitis epidemic of the years 1979-80 or to other factors are discussed. The hyperbilirubinemias are suggested to be of a posthepatitic character, produced in the unrecognised hepatitis cases who had been subclinical at the time of the epidemic. More information is expected from the development of the trend in the next years.