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Original poster

Why can’t you donate blood if you have had a transfusion in the past

80 replies

MiriamMay · 23/09/2024 12:36

Like the woman in this BBC article, I am not able to give blood because I had a blood transfusion after giving birth.

I don’t understand why this is though. There’s been quite a bit in the news lately about there being a shortage of blood donations. I really don’t understand why having received a transfusion in the past means you can’t donate blood in the future.

BBC News

Anna Edwards next to her baby Somer in hospital. She is unconscious and has a tube in her nose. The baby has some dark hair and is wrapped in a white blanket asleep.

Give blood plea from Whitley Bay mother saved by transfusion

The Newcastle Blood Donor Centre has 3,500 sessions available over the next two months.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czj9dv2vj3ko

OP posts:
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Mayflower282 · 23/09/2024 12:39

ChocolateMagnum · 23/09/2024 12:38

The answer to this is all over NHS and blood transfusion/organ donor websites.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/blood-transfusion/#:~:text=Giving%20blood%20afterwards,NHS%20Blood%20and%20Transplant%20website.

Helpful 🙄

it’s because blood donated before 1980 might be contaminated with CJD (mad cow disease)

Lanzarotelady · 23/09/2024 12:39

To protect the person who is receiving your blood.

mychilddeservesaneducation · 23/09/2024 12:39

There's a risk that you may have contracted vCJD. They can't test for this.

Lanzarotelady · 23/09/2024 12:38

Giving blood afterwards
Currently, you cannot give blood if you had a blood transfusion after 1 January 1980.
This is a precautionary measure to reduce the risk of a serious condition called variant CJD (vCJD) being passed on by donors.

nhs.uk

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

Find out about the different types of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), and what causes the condition and how it's treated.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/creutzfeldt-jakob-disease-cjd/