Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 23, 2026

Repeated Blood Collection from Tail Vein of Non-Anesthetized Rats with a Vacuum Blood Collection System
Published on: December 10, 2017
First-time blood donors experience less venipuncture pain than anticipated
Johan O Wedin1,2, Daphne Wu3, Anders E Henriksson3,4
1Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery and Anesthesiology, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.
Background:
Little is known about the perceived pain associated with blood donation. This study aimed to investigate expected and perceived pain among first-time blood donors.
Study Design And Methods:
In this prospective observational study, 140 consecutive first-time blood donors (70 men and 70 women) were included. The donors were asked to grade the expected pain prior to their first whole blood donation and to grade the perceived pain after the procedure. The pain was graded using an 11-point Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst imaginable pain). The association between experienced pain and drop-out as a blood donor at 2 years was also investigated.
Results:
The mean age of first-time blood donors was 30.6 years, with no difference between men and women (31.2 vs. 30.0 years, p = .533). First-time blood donors significantly overestimated the venipuncture pain, with on average 1.16 units lower perceived (β = -1.16, t = -5.335, p < .001). Men reported both higher expected and perceived pain rates than women, but with no statistically significant interaction between pain discrepancy and sex (β = -0.41, t = -1.351, p = .179). In a multivariable logistic regression model, perceived pain was not associated with deregistration as a blood donor at 2 years.
Conclusions:
First-time blood donors experience significantly less pain than expected while donating blood. This knowledge should be used to reduce anxiety in first-time blood donors and profiled in donor recruitment campaigns to possibly increase the number of available blood donors.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Pre-Procedural Guidelines for Assessing Blood Pressure
Blood and Nerve Supply to the Bones
Nutrient Artery
The nutrient artery is the main blood vessel that enters the diaphysis via the nutrient foramen. While most long bones have only one nutrient foramen, large bones, such as the femur, may have two. This...
Blood Transfusion
Blood Transfusion Overview
A blood transfusion is a medical procedure used to replace blood lost due to injury, surgery, or to treat conditions such as anemia or cancer. During a transfusion, donor blood is...
Local Anesthetics: Clinical Application as Intravenous Regional Anesthesia
One of the advantages of...
Hemodialysis I: Introduction
Veins as Blood Reservoirs

