An estimate of blood donor eligibility in the general population

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Hematology
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Blood donation is crucial for healthcare.
• Accurate estimation of eligible donors is vital for blood supply management.
• Current estimates of eligible blood donors may be overestimated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To estimate the percentage of adults medically eligible to donate blood in the United States.
• To evaluate the impact of specific American Red Cross donor guidelines on eligibility.
• To determine sex-specific eligibility rates and compare them to common assumptions.

Main Methods:

• Utilized United States population data to assess deferral rates based on 13 American Red Cross donor guidelines.
• Calculated sex-specific eligibility rates using serial multiplication of individual eligibility rates, accounting for category overlap and associations.
• Modeled the effect of surrogate testing (ALT, anti-HBc) for non-A, non-B hepatitis on donor eligibility.

Main Results:

• Estimated eligibility rates were 57% for women and 70% for men, lower than commonly stated figures.
• Surrogate testing for non-A, non-B hepatitis reduced estimated eligibility to 55% for women and 67% for men.
• Calculations indicated an equal number of medically eligible men and women in the population.

Conclusions:

• Current American Red Cross donor guidelines significantly limit the pool of eligible blood donors.
• Surrogate testing further reduces the eligible donor population.
• Despite differing eligibility rates, the number of eligible male and female donors is approximately equal.