Prevalence of antinuclear antibodies among healthy blood donors: An experience of a regional blood transfusion center

Antinuclear antibodies (ANAs) are antibodies directed against one or more molecules within the nucleus. Although, ANA is present in patients suffering from connective tissue diseases, few reports reveal the presence of ANA in a healthy population. The present study aimed to identify the prevalence of ANA in healthy blood donors. Blood samples from 370 healthy blood donors were included in the present study. To detect serum ANA, an indirect immunofluorescence technique was used using HEp-2000 slides. A titer of 1:80 was used and the type of pattern (if positive) cases were also noticed. Out of 370 healthy donors, there were 187 males and 183 females (M: F = 1.02:1). ANA was detected in four out of 370 samples (1.081%). All the positive donors were female (100%). Among all the positive cases, three cases showed a speckled pattern and one showed a homogenous pattern at 1:80 dilution. In conclusion, there is a low prevalence of ANA positivity among healthy individuals. Although, along with clinical signs and symptoms, ANA is diagnostic of autoimmune disease, the mere presence of ANA is not synonymous with the presence of clinically significant autoimmune disease.