SINGAPORE: The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) said Singapore's blood supply is safe. The assurance comes after the recall of a chemical substance used to test donated blood.
Some batches of reagents for the Nucleic Acid Test (NAT) were recalled by its supplier, Chiron, on August 15.
The NAT is one of two tests used by the HSA's Blood Services Group (BSG) to detect HIV, Hepatitis B virus and Hepatitis C virus in human blood.
Chiron recalled the reagents after it found out that they had been stored in a freezer which had inconsistent temperatures.
It said that the reagents have a shelf-life of 30 days upon thawing, while the affected ones were effective up to the twelfth day post-thaw.
Chiron is still trying to determine the stability of the affected reagents past the twelfth day.
BSG's investigations into the recalled batches confirmed that 99 per cent of donations were tested with reagents that fall within the acceptable 12-day storage period identified by Chiron.
The remaining one per cent was tested with reagents used within 22 days.
A BSG spokesperson said all blood donations undergo stringent checks and there is no evidence to show the affected reagents have affected the safety of the national blood supply. - CNA/vm