Pre-Donation Deferral of Blood Donors: A Retrospective Analysis in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Background: Blood donor selection is important for the safety of donors and recipients as well as for maintaining adequate blood supply. The aim of this study was to identify the reasons for pre-donation deferral at the Blood bank of a tertiary care hospital in Delhi. Knowing the reasons for donor deferral can help in formulating more efficient donor selection criteria. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted on all donors who presented for blood donation between 1st January 2018 and 30th June 2018, at the Blood bank of Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi. The donation and deferral data were analyzed to determine the frequency analysis of accepted and deferred donors. Results: Among 18, 586 donors presenting to the blood bank during the study period, 17, 297 (93.06 %) were accepted for donation, and 1289 (6.94 %) were deferred. Out of 1289 deferral, 1220 (94.65 %) were males and rest 69 (5.35 %) were females. Among the deferred, 1132 (87.81 %) were deferred for temporary reasons and 157 (12.19 %) for permanent reasons. Main reasons for temporary deferral were low weight (15.59 %), anaemia (12.49 %) and history of recent animal bite/administration of anti-rabies vaccination (11.02 %) while neurological disorders in the form of Seizures& other neuropsychological disorders (9.31 %), Multiple prick marks over phlebotomy site (2.17 %) and thyroid disorders (0.31 %) were the main reasons for permanent deferrals. Conclusion: The deferral rate among blood donors in blood bank of Safdarjung hospital is relatively low as compared to the world-wide data. However, some studies from India show similar rate. Strategies to reduce deferral and improve blood donor retention are required to ensure adequate blood supply.