Donors must weigh at least pounds and be in good health. Blood is drawn from the donor and the platelets, or another blood component, are collected by the cell separator and the remaining components of the blood are returned to the donor during the donation.
Each apheresis donation procedure takes about one-and-one-half to two hours. Donors can watch movies or relax during the donation. Platelets are critically important to the survival of many patients with clotting problems aplastic anemia, leukemia or cancer, and patients who will undergo organ transplants or major surgeries like heart bypass grafts. Platelets can only be stored for five days after being collected.
Maintaining an adequate supply of this lifesaving, perishable product is an ongoing challenge. Why are you contradicting that guidance? Social distancing does not have to mean social disengagement. Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Food and Drug Administration have also issued statements encouraging blood donation for those who are well. Amid this coronavirus emergency, we are asking individuals to take this responsibility seriously by practicing social distancing and donating blood.
These two activities—which are not mutually exclusive—will go a long way in keeping community members healthy by slowing the spread of the virus and by ensuring that patients across the country receive lifesaving blood. We apologize for any inconvenience and want to stress that we are doing everything we can to have more blood drives for our donors. As the nation actively responds and navigates to this evolving pandemic, we are all having to make difficult decisions to ensure our health and safety.
Face shields can be worn in addition to face masks but not as a substitute. We understand that the resumption of mask wearing is frustrating and disappointing for many and appreciate your cooperation during this uncertain time. The Red Cross only collects blood from individuals who are healthy and feeling well at the time of donation.
To help keep everyone attending Red Cross blood drives and visiting blood donation centers safe as COVID cases are surging again, the Red Cross requires all blood donors, staff and others to wear a face mask regardless of their vaccination status.
For example, what if they have a medical condition that makes it difficult or impossible to wear a mask? Valve face masks protect the individual wearing the mask, but do not protect those who come into contact with them. The Red Cross is committed to ensuring the safest environment possible for all those who engage in our lifesaving mission. If a donor or staff would like to wear a valve mask, they will need to place an additional mask, such as a surgical mask or cloth mask, over the valve mask while at the blood drive.
An antibody test screens for antibodies in your blood. An antibody test assesses whether your immune systems has responded to the infection, not if the virus or infection is currently active. A positive test result indicates that you were likely exposed to the virus, regardless of whether you experienced symptoms or received a COVID vaccine.
Individuals who receive a positive or reactive test result may be contacted by the Red Cross to request additional information and conduct further testing as part of a research study. An antibody test assesses whether your immune systems has responded to the infection, not if the virus is currently present. This test measures total antibodies, unlike some tests that measure a single antibody. A positive result indicates that an individual may have had previous exposure to the virus that causes COVID and their body has developed specific antibodies to the virus.
However, antibody tests are not perfect. On Sept. As standard practice, the Red Cross does not reveal the identity of an individual in relation to their test result unless required by law and data are most often supplied in aggregate.
However, based on previous data during other coronavirus outbreaks, such as SARS, antibodies remain detectable in blood for many months, but levels start to slowly decline soon after infection clears. Antibody loss may be quicker in persons with mild illness or who have had no symptoms. To that end, upon request, we have shared summary, de-identified testing data with 28 state health authorities.
The Red Cross only discloses testing data as required by law. In fact, there are currently studies to understand if there may be some level of benefit to the patient. Currently, our primary efforts are the prioritized expansion of red blood cell and platelet collections to meet surging hospital demand and have discontinued our convalescent plasma program.
We will continue to monitor the situation in the context of emerging information, the evolution of the pandemic, and hospital demand to determine if we should resume our convalescent plasma program in the future. An EUA is used by the FDA to allow more timely access to medical products and devices to help respond to a public health crisis and protect the health and safety of the public. At the end of the public health emergency or if the product receives formal FDA approval or clearance, the EUA will be terminated.
The phrase FDA-approved is strictly limited to those items that have completed the rigorous FDA trial and review process.
Per standard procedures, only successful donations are sent to our laboratory for testing. Another less common explanation for a reactive result is that both tests were unable to completed. It takes one to three weeks after the first does COVID vaccine to reach a detectable level of antibodies. As with all tests, false positives, or a test result that incorrectly states the presence of antibodies, can occur. The Red Cross may contact the donor to request additional information and may test the sample for additional test results.
And how can donors access test results? Certain blood characteristics are inherited making them more likely to be found within certain donor groups. These matched blood products provide a more compatible unit for transfusion to patients in need. In some cases, this is because the Red Cross immunohematology-reference laboratory may have previously tested their donation for sickle cell trait at the request of a hospital to fulfill a specific product need. In these cases, the donor may have received a previous result of negative or positive.
While the Red Cross will work to resolve many inconsistent results, portion will remain inconsistent. Carrying the sickle cell trait does not mean that an individual has sickle cell disease. Individuals who only carry the sickle cell trait are eligible to donate blood. This screening is performed on a blood sample given during the standard donation process to look for the presence of an abnormal type of hemoglobin, called hemoglobin S or sickled hemoglobin, a key indicator of sickle cell trait.
This means it is likely the individual inherited one sickle cell gene and one normal gene from their parents. If an individual receives a positive result, they should consult their medical provider to discuss their test results and pursue additional confirmatory diagnostic testing. We are also looking into other possible funding sources. While, carrying the trait does not mean that an individual has sickle cell disease, health experts recommend that individuals with sickle cell trait be aware of their status and consult their medical provider on what it means for them.
In general, many individuals who carry the sickle cell trait have no medical problems related to sickle cell trait. However, these screening are not perfect. As with all tests and screening, false results, or a screening result that incorrectly states the presence of abnormal hemoglobin, can occur.
This is why those who receive a positive result are encouraged to consult their medical provider for confirmatory testing and discuss what their results mean for them. Like other blood donation screenings, sickle cell trait screening is part of the blood donation testing process which occurs at no charge to the donor. In addition, this screening helps the Red Cross identify compatible blood types to help sickle cell patients more quickly. Per standard donation procedure, only successful donations are sent to our laboratory for screening.
This means that the individual is likely not a sickle cell trait carrier. It is important to note, that the Red Cross is not screening for other abnormal hemoglobin cells that can also cause sickling-- such as Hemoglobin C. It only takes 20 minutes to help someone in urgent need, but not everyone is actually eligible to be a blood donor. Red blood cells, plasma, and platelets are the lifeline for medical treatments needed by patients all across the country, and keeping up the supply is an ongoing struggle.
Almost 40, blood donations are needed each day for all sorts of conditions and procedures: Everything from cancer, sickle cell disease, and anemia, to complications of pregnancy, trauma, and surgeries. Blood donations are also used to make immunizations for chickenpox, hepatitis B, and tetanus, as well as clotting factor products for hemophiliacs. While the American Red Cross and other organizations appreciate all who volunteer to be a donor, there are a number of reasons why some individuals may not be permitted to give blood.
Here are the top five:. You have a recent piercing or tattoo. The primary reason is to prevent transferring the hepatitis virus. Cosmetic tattoos applied in a licensed establishment in a regulated state using sterile needles and ink that is not reused are acceptable.
You have a bad cold or the flu. To maximize red blood cell RBC supplies, blood banks generally dispense on a first-in, first-out basis, working off the assumption that blood stored up to 42 days per U. Food and Drug Administration [FDA] regulations will degrade to some extent, but that blood stored for this long is not inherently harmful. Because blood undergoes several morphologic, biochemical, and physiologic changes over time, some people worry that old blood may lose its efficacy or be deleterious to recipients.
Obviously, men and women are biologically different, including differences in blood composition, such as: 7. The second concerns hemoglobin levels; normal hemoglobin levels for healthy men range between In , the FDA increased the minimum acceptable hemoglobin level for male blood and platelet donors from A recent study published in JAMA raised questions about whether it should be. In the 31,participant study, led by Rutger A. Middelburg, PhD, of the Center for Clinical Transfusion Research, Sanquin Research in Leiden, the Netherlands, found that men who received RBC transfusions from women who had ever been pregnant were 13 percent more likely to die during a median of days of follow-up, compared with men who received blood transfusions from male donors.
Men who received blood transfusions from women who had never been pregnant did not have an increased mortality risk, and neither did women who received blood donations from women who had been pregnant or from male donors. Ritchard G. Blood is more important than no blood in many situations.
Another issue associated with female blood, and particularly donations from those who have been pregnant, is transfusion-related acute lung injury TRALI , a complication most commonly caused by white blood cell antibodies present in the plasma component of blood products.
When transfused, these antibodies can activate granulocytes, causing plasma to leak into the lungs, and leading to acute pulmonary edema. James explained. There are special situations, like cases of cytomegalovirus and general precautions that are taken when pregnant women receive a transfusion, but these measures are unrelated to the data provided in this article.
Jesse M. But Dr. In , the FDA revised its policy to the present month deferral policy. Because of my service in the U. Ehrenfeld said. Ehrenfeld, but these populations were not restricted from donating. The fourth generation of HIV testing offers a near percent sensitivity, and every blood donation is tested for HIV, for a nine- to day window.
These advances in blood safety have everything to do with improved testing technology and nothing to do with progress in deferral practices. Ehrenfeld favors replacing the blanket restriction with individual risk-assessment policies and categorizing MSM into those with low or high risk for HIV. Implementing individual risk assessment is a challenge, though, especially in the large-scale U. Ehrenfeld noted. The long-term goal of a stable, reliable blood supply is in sight, if certain shifts in blood donation policies are enacted, according to the experts who spoke with ASH Clinical News.
It causes a big surge when a lot of that blood might not necessarily be needed, so blood organizations will act responsibly, and temporarily stop taking donations. According to Dr. James, the U.
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