title: Whole-blood donation: blood donor suitability and adverse events.
abstract: Approximately 3% to 3.5% of the US population donates whole blood each year. Physicians might be approached by a blood donor because of a donor suitability issue, a positive postdonation test, or a donation-related complication. Approximately 83% of blood donors successfully donate; but 13% are rejected because of a donor suitability issue; 1% have a positive test, which is often nonspecific or false-positive; and 2% to 4% of the phlebotomies are not successful. The most common adverse physical events based on donor interviews are bruise (23%), sore arm (10%), fatigue (8%), and vasovagal reaction (7%), while uncommon events include nerve irritation (0.9%), syncope (0.1-0.3%), and arterial puncture (0.01%). One in 3400 donors (0.033%) report seeking outside medical care. Serious injuries occur but are very rare. More often, blood donors do well and feel satisfied with the blood donation experience.
authors.affiliation: SE Michigan Region, American Red Cross Blood Services, 100 Mack Street, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. newmanb@usa.redcross.org
authors.forename: Bruce H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Newman
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001782:Blood Donors; D001800:Blood Specimen Collection / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000191:economics; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D005221:Fatigue; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain; D018579:Patient Selection; D065227:Transfusion Reaction