Apheresis Platelet Donation
What is it?
Platelet apheresis is the process of collecting platelets from the blood of donors and transferring other blood components back into the body. Apheresis separate blood platelets from whole blood. A machine setup automatically separates the platelets from your donation and returns the rest of the blood components back to your body. In developed countries, platelet apheresis has long been a routine method of collecting blood components. The collection uses disposable collection pipelines and bags. The whole process is operated and monitored by the computer system. Throughout this process, highly-trained professionals provide services to the donors.
What are Platelets?
Platelets are blood cells that help to stop bleeding. That are fragile and have a short life. Platelets collected must be transfused within 5 days.
Why?
Platelet is mainly used to treat patients who have low platelet count or platelet dysfunction due to various reasons. Some examples are acute hemorrhage, leukaemia, aplastic anemia, lymphoma, bone marrow transplantation and bone marrow inhibition caused by radiation and chemotherapy in cancer patients. Many of these patients require continuous platelet transfusion to sustain life, especially in the treatment of leukemia. Even if the patient is lucky enough to find a suitable bone marrow donor, the platelet deficiency is inevitable in the process of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, which is always a risk to life and requires a large number of platelets to ensure the smooth operation of the transplantation process. Thus, the importance of platelet donation for this process by healthy donors.
Pre-donations preparations ?
Do not take any medicine a week before blood donation.
Take a light meal before blood donation and avoid rich fatty food (eg. dairy products, creamy or oily food, fried food, etc.)
Do not donate blood with an empty stomach.
Abstain from alcoholic drinks the day before and on the day of the donation.
Get enough sleep the night before blood donation.
The original of your valid identity document must be brought with you when donating blood.
Blood donation interval ?
If you have given whole blood:
You can donate it again after 6 months.
You can donate apheresis platelets after 3 months.
If you have given apheresis platelets:
You can donate it again after 2 weeks.
You can donate whole blood after 4 weeks.
Donor Requirements for apheresis platelets?
Age:18-55 years old
Weight: at least 50 kg
Meets all the screening tests
Platelet count in peripheral blood at least 150,000/ul
Good vein in the arm with no failure record of needle insertion in past
Can assure 1~2 hours of collection time.
What are differences between whole blood and apheresis platelet
donations?
Can I be a regular platelet donor?
Yes, you can donate platelets every 2 weeks. Blood line has set up a special unit of blood donors known as "Bloodline Platelet Reserve Force". This spcial force volunteers can be called upon when supplies dwindle or during emergency cases. They act as a special reserve force.
SCAN QR CODE below to join the Bloodline Platelet Reserve Force.
