Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Blood Donation

Do you donate blood?

  • Yes

    Votes: 67 44.7%

  • No

    Votes: 83 55.3%
  • Total voters
    150
Status
Not open for further replies.
I'd like to remind everyone that Valentine's Day (February 14) is also the 10th annual National Donor Day. Everyone in the U.S. is encouraged to:
Fill out an organ & tissue donor card, carry it, and make sure your family knows you want to be a donor.

Join the Registry of the National Marrow Donor Program. This is for anyone willing to be a bone marrow donor if a patient in need happens to match their antigen type.

If you are expecting, arrange to donate your baby's umbilical cord blood.

Donate blood.​
Of course, those in other countries are encouraged to give these gifts of life as well.
 
I used to give blood every 3 months until the Mad Cow Disease scare struck in th 1990's. I'd lived in England for a while and now they don't want my blood.

I'm a universal donor too - such a shame.
 
Nope. they won't take it due to an interesting lifestyle I led many years ago. My wife used to but since we got together, they won't take hers either. I'm planning on storing some of my own for my own use though, just in case. I have to look into that further.
 
Nope, never. It's my blood and if I didn't need it I wouldn't have it.

I know I can make more, but that doesn't matter, I wouldn't have it in the first place if I didn't need it so you can keep your grubby mitts off.
 
Markleshark said:
Nope, never. It's my blood and if I didn't need it I wouldn't have it.

I know I can make more, but that doesn't matter, I wouldn't have it in the first place if I didn't need it so you can keep your grubby mitts off.
Click to expand...
the little prick doesn't hurt at all. it's really uneventful almost. go on, everyone is doing it.
 
iBlue said:
the little prick doesn't hurt at all. it's really uneventful almost. go on, everyone is doing it.
Click to expand...


You're kidding aren't you?!
Last time I had blood tests it took them 5 attempts to get the blood flowing!
My arms were bruised like hell!!
 
Doctor Q said:
Dangerous to whom in what way?
Click to expand...

As of right now it "may" be dangerous to an infant. It is unknown if it is true but some are being cautious.

The chances of it being dangerous are slim, but people should be aware that minor complications may arise from it.
 
Wish I could stand doing it without going into shock. When I was in Riyadh they were paying serious riyals for A- blood.
 
eva01 said:
As of right now it "may" be dangerous to an infant. It is unknown if it is true but some are being cautious.

The chances of it being dangerous are slim, but people should be aware that minor complications may arise from it.
Click to expand...
I was curious (plus I like to give proper facts), so I did some research.

There is of course no danger in saving blood from an umbilical cord once it has been separated from the newborn. Problems can occur, however, if the cord is clamped too early in an attempt to maximize cord blood content. This should not happen with properly trained medical professionals.

A March 2005 article in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada explains that cord blood collection should be encouraged and that perinatal care teams should be trained to optimize the collection process, but that "the safe management of obstetric delivery should never be compromised to facilitate cord blood collection." I agree that the mother's and child's well-being must be paramount.

Although cord blood does not contain a large volume of cells, and therefore can't always be used to provide sufficient stem cells to a matching adult, new techniques are making a little go a longer way and, with proper matching, blood from multiple cords can sometimes be combined to help an adult patient.

Some parents also bank umbilical cord blood as a safety net for members of their own family.
 
Here in Thunder Bay we have a Plasma collection center. Oh boy donating is interesting when you have a huge fear of needles. And the whole them taking your blood, spinning it, removing the protien and then giving the blood back is quite gross. I am now going once a week. Yes, I hate needles, but I have no real reason not to go. It has only been 4 times, but check back with me in a few months and I assure you that I will have greatly exceeded that.:)
 
j26 said:
I'm a universal donor too - such a shame.
Click to expand...

They won't take mine for reasons that I have mentioned above. And that really is too bad, because it's a silly rule of theirs anyways.

And I just found out I'm a universal donor (plus the interesting fact that O- people are universal receivers of blood plasma, and people with AB blood-type are universal donors...apparently via Wikipedia)
 
n-abounds said:
They won't take mine for reasons that I have mentioned above. And that really is too bad, because it's a silly rule of theirs anyways.

And I just found out I'm a universal donor (plus the interesting fact that O- people are universal receivers of blood plasma, and people with AB blood-type are universal donors...apparently via Wikipedia)
Click to expand...

Thats wrong. O- is the universal donor. Only the O antigen (which all humans have) AB+ is the universal recipient with all 3 of the other antigens, the A the B and the Rh Factor.
 
MongoTheGeek said:
Thats wrong. O- is the universal donor. Only the O antigen (which all humans have) AB+ is the universal recipient with all 3 of the other antigens, the A the B and the Rh Factor.
Click to expand...

Hmm...I think you misunderstood. I am O- and therefore the universal donor for blood serum.

But apparently, the system is reversed for blood plasma. For blood plasma, O is the universal receiver, and AB is the universal donor.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back