A Study of Blood Donor Deferral Causes: Pre vs Post Donation and Transfusion Transmissible Infections

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of different causes of donor rejection before and after blood donation based on donor selection tools, and to see the usefulness of Chemiluminescence Immunoassay (CLIA) technique over rational screening by kit method in detecting borderline cases of TTI.

Methodology: All donors who came for the donation of blood over a period of 02 years between March 2019 to February 2021 were evaluated after taking their consent and seeking approval from Hospital Ethical Review Board. The data was analyzed to determine using SPSS version 20.

Results: Among 1849 individuals, mostly ranging between 25 to 45 years, presenting for blood donation, 164 (8.8%) were deferred. Among total deferred cases, 95(57.9%) were temporary deferrals and 69(42%) were permanent deferrals. The most frequent cause of deferral was low hemoglobin. Anemia was the leading cause of deferral in approximately one third of the rejected individuals (n = 51, 31%). One striking finding observed in this study was that 4.7% HCV positive and 62.5% HIV positive donors were in window period, which showed borderline results on CLIA.

Conclusion: Donor deferral, both pre and post blood donation is a major problem in our country and accounts for 8.8% of all prospective blood donors. Our results put an emphasis on addressing these causes efficiently to ensure safety of both the donor and potential recipients.

Keywords: Blood donors; Deferral; Anemia; Transfusion transmissible infections; Screening; Donor questionnaire.