Blood Donation

Why Blood is required in hospitals?

Blood is required for patients undergoing surgeries like heart surgery, orthopedic surgery, organ transplant, bone-marrow transplant, and for treating accident victims, burn victims, sickle cell disease, anemic patients, bleeding disorder such as hemophilia, some cancer patients, and so on. [In the human body blood carries oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body]

How much blood is required?

According to some estimates in India more than 1crore [10 million] units of blood is required per year. But there is significant shortage of availability due to which some patients could not be saved during emergencies. [1 unit is 525 ml / 1pint]

Why blood donation?

So far no process is evolved to manufacture blood synthetically, and there is no substitute for blood. Hence blood required for treating needy patients is met only by other healthy persons who could donate.

One time blood donation by a person can save about three lives by supplying three different components that is red blood cells, plasma and platelets.

Who can donate blood?

Any healthy person –

1.   Above the age of 18 years and body weight above 45 kgs can donate blood. People above the age of 60 years are not recommended.

2.   Haemoglobin count more than 12 gms/dl for men and 12.5 gms/dl for women.

Who should not donate blood?

1. Any person infected with diseases transmissible by blood transfusion like -

1.1.  AIDS/HIV

1.2.  Hepatitis B or C

1.3.  Syphilis

2. Persons suffering from -

    2.1.  Cancer

    2.2.  Seizures

    2.3.  Acute respiratory desease

    2.4.  Skin infections

 3. Females during menstrual period.

 4. Person in empty stomach.

How much blood a person can donate?

In an average 7% of the body weight of a person is blood. A healthy male has about 76 ml blood per kg of his body weight, and a female has about 66 ml per kg of her body weight. A person needs only 50 ml of blood per kg of body weight for use. That means the balance 26 ml/16 ml is available as reserve! During blood donation only 8 ml blood per kg of body weight of a person is taken leaving still enough blood reserve.

A healthy person after donating blood will not become weak or exhausted. The red blood cells are replenished within 4 days and white blood cells within 3 weeks. The amount of blood removed during blood donation will be replenished by the body within 56 days without the need for any extra or special nutrients or care.

Any normal person can donate blood once in 90 days without having any ill effect on his body or health. But red blood cells could be donated once in 56 days or double red cells once in 112 days; and platelets once in 7 days but less than 24 times a year.

Complementary benefits to the blood donor

1.   Whenever some body donates blood the excess cholesterol in their blood is removed along with the plasma. This reduces the risk of clots and heart attack to the donor.

2.   Donating blood prevents hemochromatosis and helps to maintain iron content in blood.

3.   Blood donation helps to maintain healthy liver.

4.   The donor certificate issued while donating blood will entitle the donor to receive blood whenever he needs at free of cost.

How to donate blood?

Blood donation can be done at any of the Blood Banks or Blood Donation Camps held on some occasions.

A typical blood donation process may take about 20 minutes.

It is recommended to have some food and drink before the blood donation. The donor should not be empty stomach.

The formal process involves:

1.   Registration of the donor with personal details and past medical history.

2.   Medical examination, which includes checking of weight, temperature, blood pressure, pulse rate, blood group and hemoglobin test.

3.   To extract blood a sterile needle is used only once for each donor and then discarded. Donor may feel a small prick while inserting needle to the blood vessel, but no pain. An average person has 10 units of blood in his body. Normally close to 1 unit of blood per person is removed during blood donation. This process may take about 8 minutes.

4.   Soon after collection of blood the donor is made to sit and relax, some snacks and fruit juice is given.

5.   After consuming snacks and beverages, sitting and relaxing for about 15 minutes, the donor can move and engage with his routine. But should avoid strenuous work for rest of the day.

6.   Take enough liquid during next couple of hours to replenish the body fluid.

Types of Blood [or Blood group]

There are four main types of blood with totally 8 sub-groups:

                        O+   1 in 3 persons                       O-   1 in 15 persons

                        A+   1 in 3 persons                        A-   1 in 16 persons

                        B+   1 in 12 persons                      B-   1 in 67 persons

                        AB+ 1 in 29 persons                      AB- 1 in 167 persons

Components of Blood

Components of blood

There are four transfusable types of components in the blood. They are Red cells, Platelets, Plasma and Cryoprecipitate.

Blood donors can give either whole blood or only a specific blood component.