Blood Donation

Recently, I got a chance to experience donating blood in Blood Donation campaign held in conjunction with Mahabbah's Week in IIUM, Kuantan Campus. The one-day event (17th Feb 2010) took place in lobby KOM which targeted for about 80 to 100 donors to donate their blood. This event was organized by Hospital Temerloh staffs. It was actually my first time experience as I am quite afraid with injections, to be frank. However, after undergoing that thing then I realized it was not too painful though I've experienced dizziness. Below are some information that I get related to the blood donation.

Firstly, the donor's blood type must be determined if the blood will be used for transfusions. The collecting agency usually identifies whether the blood is type A, B, AB or O. More testing, including a crossmatch, is usually done before a transfusion. Group O is often cited as the "universal donor" but this only refers to red cell transfusions. For plasma transfusions the system is reversed and AB is the universal donor type.

Most blood is tested for diseases, including some STDs. The tests used are high-sensitivity screening test and no actual diagnosis is made. Some of the test results are later found to be false positives using more specific testing. False negatives are rare, but donors are discouraged from using blood donation for the purpose of anonymous STD screening because a false negative could mean a contaminated unit. The blood is usually discarded if these tests are positive, but there are some exceptions, such as autologous donations. The donor is generally notified of the test result.

There are two main methods of obtaining blood from a donor. The most frequent is simply to take the blood from a vein as whole blood. This blood is typically separated into parts, usually red blood cells and plasma, since most recipients need only a specific component for transfusions. The other method is to draw blood from the donor, separate it using a centrifuge or a filter, store the desired part, and return the rest to the donor. This process is called apheresis, and it is often done with a machine specifically designed for this purpose.

For direct transfusion a vein can be used but the blood may be taken from an artery instead. In this case, the blood is not stored and is pumped directly from the donor into the recipient. This was an early method for blood transfusion and is rarely used in modern practice.

For complication, donors are screened for health problems that would put them at risk for serious complications from donating. First-time donors, teenagers, and women are at a higher risk of a reaction. Hypovolemic reaction can occur because of a rapid change in blood pressure. Fainting is generally the worst problem encountered.

The process has similar risks to other forms of phlebotomy. Bruising of the arm from the needle insertion is the most common concern. One study found that less than 1% of donors had this problem. A number of less common complications of blood donation are known to occur. These include arterial puncture, delayed bleeding, nerve irritation, nerve injury, tendon injury, thrombophlebitis, and allergic reactions.