Assessment of Essential Trace Elements and Toxic Metal Contaminants of Banked Blood Designated for Transfusion in Igbinedion University Teaching Hospital, Okada, Nigeria

Blood transfusion is a critical part of patient’s intensive care and is life saving for patients with severe anemia or hemorrhage. The goal of blood banking is to provide adequate and safe blood to recipients at no risk to donors. These donors may have had a variety of exposures to substances including toxic heavy metals from environmental and occupational sources. Exposure to environmental heavy metals is common among Africans. Although many of these metals are known neurotoxicants, to date, monitoring of this exposure is limited, even in countries such as Nigeria that are undergoing rapid industrialization. Concentration of Lead, Cadmium, Zinc and copper in samples from eighty six (86) blood donors comprising of O, A, B and AB blood groups were estimated by inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS), aliquot of 20µL of blood sample was aspirated into the quartz spray chamber after instrument was standardized with standard blank and various standards (Cadmium, Lead, Zinc and Copper). Data values of Lead, Cadmium, Zinc and Copper obtained indicated that essential and toxic metal levels from donor blood were within permissible range. Data were analysed using SPSS version 20 and significance level were set at p =≤ 0.05. The observed blood levels of cadmium and lead in donor blood banked designated for transfusion in this study were in correlation with the permissible range of toxic metals. More so, there was an insignificant increase in the essential metals level in the blood donor group when compared with the reference range. This study therefore concludes that donor blood designated for transfusion at Igbinedion university teaching hospital Okada had metal concentrations that is within the estimated tolerable concentration.