A study to assess the iron status of regular blood donors

• Author Details:   
• Vijatha Thomas
• Arun T. Mithrason
• Santhi Silambanan

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Blood transfusions save lives and improve health. The general impact of blood donation on iron status has been studied since the late 1970’s. Iron deficiency anemia is a common finding in regular blood donors. According to current guidelines hemoglobin (Hb) is used to screen donors in blood bank. Hb measurement alone may not detect donors with iron-deficiency, thus accepting many donors with depleted iron stores, but normal Hb values. In this study we have assessed the iron status of regular male blood donors. 240 male donors were included in this study and were divided into two groups depending on number of donation. Group A consisted of 110 first time donors and group B consisted of 130 regular donors, who had donated more than three times in past 2 yrs. Serum ferritin, iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), transferrin saturation and complete blood count (CBC) was done in all the donors. The mean serum ferritin level in group B (57.6±37.5ng/ml) was significantly lower compared to group A blood donors (75.5±50.8ng/ml). 4.5% of donors in group B and 2.3% of donors in group A had reduced serum iron. Thus Hb estimation alone will not detect iron-deficiency in regular male donors. Serum ferritin and serum iron should be done in all blood donors to ensure donor safety.

Keywords: Blood donation, Blood donors, Iron-deficiency anemia, Serum ferritin, Serum iron