Acceptable as long as you feel well when you come to donate, and your blood pressure is at least 90/50 (systolic/diastolic). Wait for 12 months after receiving a blood transfusion from another person in the United States. You may not donate if you received a blood transfusion since 1980 in the United Kingdom or France.
Health benefits of donating blood include good health and reduced risk of cancer and hemochromatosis. It helps in reducing the risk of damage to liver and pancreas. Donating blood may help in improving cardiovascular health and reducing obesity.
Medications for high blood pressure do not disqualify you from donating. Acceptable as long as you feel well when you come to donate, and your blood pressure is at least 90/50 (systolic/diastolic). Wait for 12 months after receiving a blood transfusion from another person in the United States.
Thyroid disease Patients with thyroid disease may not donate if the condition is under investigation or if malignancy is suspected. An over- or an underactive thyroid increases the risk of heart disease. Patients who have had radioactive iodine therapy must wait at least six months before giving blood.
You cannot donate while taking narcotics to relieve pain. You may donate blood while taking nonnarcotic pain relievers. Nonaspirin: You can donate platelets if you have taken ibuprofen or other nonaspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS).
The Full-Length Donor History Questionnaire (DHQ) is designed to evaluate any donor, while the Abbreviated Donor History Questionnaire (aDHQ) can be used with qualified frequent blood donors.
Can I donate if I am taking medication? Most medications do not prevent you from donating blood. Common medications — such as those used to control blood pressure, birth control pills and over-the-counter medications — do not affect your eligibility.
What Screening Is Done on Your Blood? After you have donated, your blood will be tested for syphilis, HIV (the virus that causes AIDS), hepatitis, and HTLV (human T-lymphotropic virus), which can cause a blood or nerve disease.
Generally speaking, only healthy persons are eligible as a donor. Concerning chronic kidney diseases, including diseases in the beginning stages, there is a risk of damaging the kidney further during the donation. Autoimmune diseases also bear the risk of transmitting the condition onto the recipient.
Many people with autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, are advised against donating blood. Share on Pinterest There are instances in which people with autoimmune diseases can donate blood. Getty Images. Anemia is also common in some rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and autoimmune patients.
Organ Donation and Lupus
People with lupus may or may not be able to donate organs. The only two absolute contraindications are HIV infection and Creutzfeldt-Jacob syndrome.You can't donate blood if you have lupus plus any of the following: Anemia. Abnormal liver function tests (liver dysfunction) If the disease is active (not in remission)
Can lupus or discoid lupus patients be blood donors? The rules for blood donation have recently changed and whereas lupus patients were previously automatically ruled out from giving blood, some patients are now allowed to donate. Changes have been made to the guidelines and lupus falls under auto-immune conditions.
Although people with multiple sclerosis can't give blood or donate bone marrow, the donation of organs is allowed. This is because the recipients of organ donations can be told about the donor and are in a position to weigh up any associated risks.
However, you must wait 1 month after taking this medication before donating platelets by apheresis. Thalomid (thalidomide) – wait 1 month. Cellcept (mycophenolate mofetil) – an immunosuppressant– wait 6 weeks. Tegison (etretinate) at any time – you are not eligible to donate blood.
Autoimmune Disorders: (such as) Crohn's disease, Grave's disease, Lupus, MS, Pernicious anemia, Rheumatoid arthritis, Sarcoidosis, Sjogren's syndrome, Ulcerative colitis, Scleroderma, Hashimoto thyroditis can't donate blood, but most can donate or sell their plasma for research purposes.
You cannot give blood if you have Bipolar Illness (manic-depression) and are taking Lithium or other medication at present or have needed medication in the past.
Persons with the following conditions are not allowed to donate blood anyime:
- Cancer.
- Cardiac disease.
- Sever lung disease.
- Hepatitis B and C.
- HIV infection, AIDS or Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD)
- High risk occupation (e.g. prostitution)
- Unexplained weight loss of more than 5 kg over 6 months.
- Chronic alcoholism.
Taking an antidepressant is generally not a cause for deferral if you are well established on your treatment (at least 4 weeks) and have no side effects from the medication. You cannot give blood if you are severely depressed or have not improved on your treatment or are taking a number of types of medication.
If someone takes cholesterol-lowering medicines as prescribed by his doctor, then this does not at all interferes with one's ability to donate blood.
Dutasteride and tamsulosin is not for use by women. This medicine can cause birth defects if a woman is exposed to it during pregnancy. Dutasteride and tamsulosin capsules should not be handled by a woman who is pregnant or who may become pregnant.
Even though the drugs are linked to prostate cancer, the risk is small. Men who are taking Proscar, Avodart, or Jalyn for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) should not stop taking their medications, but should consult their doctors about their prostate cancer risk.
People with type 1 and type 2 diabetes are eligible to give blood donations. You should have your condition under control and be in otherwise good health before you donate blood. Having your diabetes under control means that you maintain healthy blood sugar levels.
On average, the drug takes three to six months to begin reducing the size of the prostate, and the gland may continue to shrink during the next 12–18 months if treatment is continued. At its maximum, however, finasteride shrinks the gland by only about 20%.
Smoking cigarettes in and of itself doesn't disqualify you from donating blood. If you smoke and you want to donate blood, plan to refrain from smoking on the day of your appointment — both before your appointment and for three hours afterward. Smoking afterward may lead to dizziness.
Anyone on maintenance therapy with levothyroxine must be stabilised for at least three months before donation. An over- or an underactive thyroid increases the risk of heart disease. Patients who have had radioactive iodine therapy must wait at least six months before giving blood.
Alpha-adrenergic blockers, such as tamsulosin (Flomax) used for benign prostatic hyperplasia, can cause incontinence by over-relaxing the bladder muscles. Other medications that increase the risk for incontinence include sedatives, muscle relaxants, antidepressants, antipsychotics, and antihistamines.
Psoriasis. You can give blood if the psoriasis is mild and you are not taking any tablet treatment and the condition does not affect the site where the needle is inserted. You cannot give blood if you have more severe or generalised psoriasis or if you are taking oral medicines to treat the condition.
