How Important Is Blood Donation?

Blood donation is a very important and sensitive matter because a single person’s donation can save up to three other people. In South Africa, the South African National Blood Service receives and organise blood donation stations in malls, schools, clinics, hospitals and etc. About 1% of South Africans are actively donating blood. This is barely a good enough percentage as, according to the SANBS, a single unit of blood usually lasts for as long as 42 days after donation.

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Donors need to be made aware of how crucial it is that they not only donate regularly but also know how many lives a single donation for as often as every 8 weeks can save. It is easy to assume that unlike egg or sperm donations blood donation is not as prominent because first and foremost sperm and egg donors get paid a fee for their donations. Blood donation on the other hand is voluntary. This can sometimes discourage donors because evidently many people treat such situations as a give and take procedure. This, at times trumps over the SANBS’ target of 1 000 000 units of blood per year. Despite this though, it has been made known that the SANBS has over 491 000 donors, some are repeat donors and some are active for an acceptable amount of times. Surgery and Transfusion Amongst other issues, blood is important during surgeries as it is used for blood transfusions. Blood transfusions can help replace blood that was lost by a patient because of injuries or during the surgery itself. In other cases, people have illnesses that can prevent their blood from making blood and/or have issues with forming proper blood components that work. These can include blood cell disorders such as anemia and thalassemia.

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Anemia Anemia is classified as a red blood cell disorder and it occurs due to a lack of iron in the blood. Iron is produced to help the body produce hemoglobin which is a protein that helps the red blood cells carry oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body. Anemia can be divided into different types such as:

• Iron Deficiency Anemia This is otherwise known as iron deficiency anemia. This type of anemia, can cause a person to feel tired and short of breath because of the absence of red blood cells that can carry oxygen to the lungs. • Pernicious Anemia In this case the body cannot absorb the night amount of vitamin B-12. The name “pernicious” came about when it was still declared dangerous because it was untreatable. • Aplastic Anemia The bone marrow stops making enough new blood cells and your body at some point is unable to fight off infections or you experience uncontrollable bleeding. • Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia This disorder causes your immune system to destroy your red blood cells at such a rapid rate that your body cannot replace them on time. • Sickle Cell Anemia A genetic mutation occurs in the red blood cells causing them to contain an abnormal hemoglobin molecule. These red blood cells cannot carry as much oxygen as normal red blood cells and at times they are stuck in blood vessels causing a blockage of blood flow to organs.

Thalassemia Thalassemia has been said to not only be inherent but they are also caused by genetic mutations which prevent hemoglobin’s are not produced there is no sufficient amount of oxygen for all parts of the body which can cause some organs to not function properly. This can eventually result in: • Bone deformities • Enlarged spleen • Heart problems • Delays in the growth and development of children Iron Deficiency Anemia is usually treated by prescribed iron supplementation, or in the case of pernicious anemia a vitamin B-12 injection. There are cases where patients will need to get a red blood cell transfusion. Commonly blood transfusions are done through the connection of an IV one into one of the blood vessels. One of the most important things in blood transfusions is of course matching the donors blood with the recipient’s blood. Blood transfusions have more or less 70 steps. The first and most important stem includes knowing what kind of transfusion will be necessary and knowing the recipient’s blood type. An intravenous (IV) line will be inserted into a blood vessel with a needle through which the new blood will be flowing into the person’s veins. A doctor will be close by to monitor the transfusion and once the transfusion is complete the IV line will be removed. The amount of time in which a transfusion will take place will depend on various factors such as how much blood is needed and the type of blood that is needed. Anemic people who will of course need a red blood cell transfusion will take longer than other transfusions such as plasma or platelets. This will typically take up to 4 hours. Blood transfusions are a key part of different treatments and surgeries. This makes the amount of blood donated on a daily, weekly or monthly basis important for major or minor issues.