Can You Donate Blood After COVID Vaccine? – National Blood Donor Month

Can You Donate Blood After COVID Vaccine? – National Blood Donor Month

1. Introduction
2. Can You Donate Blood After COVID Vaccine?
3. Can You Donate Blood After Having COVID-19?
4. How Many Blood Types Are There?
5. Why does knowing your blood type matter?
6. Final Thoughts

INTRODUCTION

The Month of January is known nationally as Blood Donor Month! After the winter holidays in December, blood donations decrease which makes January a very important time of the year to get more donations. The winter weather, cold/flu’s, and vacations are some factors that contribute to the lower donations. Of course, we also can’t forget that we are in the middle of a global COVID-19 pandemic! This has also contributed to the lower than normal donations for the past 2 years.

CAN YOU DONATE BLOOD AFTER COVID VACCINE?

After receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, you’ll be given a vaccine card that has the manufacturer and the date when you received the vaccine. Before donating blood you’ll be screened regarding what type of vaccine you received and when you got it. Currently, according to the FDA, you are able to donate blood immediately after being vaccinated with an inactivated or RNA-based COVID-19 vaccine that is manufactured by AstraZeneca, Janssen/J&J, Moderna, Novavax, or Pfizer. If you received a live attenuated COVID-19 vaccine or do not know what type of vaccine you received, you’ll have to wait 14 days before you can donate.

CAN YOU DONATE BLOOD AFTER HAVING COVID-19

Since the outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, many studies have been conducted to analyze the effects, if any, of the virus in the bloodstream. Researches at NHLBI (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) and NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) deduced that the probability of a transfusion patient receiving blood with COVID-19 was about 0.001%. The likelihood of contracting COVID-19 from a blood transfusion would be an extremely rare occurrence. There are also protocols in place that help prevent currently infected individuals with COVID-19 from donating blood. If you tested positive, experiencing symptoms, or received a live attenuated COVID-19 vaccine then you must wait 14 days before you are eligible to donate blood.

HOW MANY BLOOD TYPES ARE THERE?

There are four main blood groups. The four main blood groups are A, B, AB, and O. Each of the 4 main blood groups can either be RhD positive or RhD negative, meaning that there are eight different blood types. If your blood is RhD positive it means you have a presence of the rhesus D antigen on your red blood cells. Being RhD positive means that you can receive blood from someone who is RhD Positive or RhD Negative, while RhD negative individuals can only receive from people who are RhD negative.

There are 8 different blood types

1. A-
2. A+
3. B-
4. B+
5. AB-
6. AB+
7. O+
8. O-

WHY DOES KNOWING YOUR BLOOD TYPE MATTER?

Your blood type is defined by the antigens that it contains, and only certain types are compatible with each other. If you were to ever need a blood transfusion, there are only certain blood types you can receive. Here is a nice chart that displays which blood types are compatible with each other.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Blood donations are crucial. Blood and blood platelets cannot be manufactured. It only can come from volunteers who donate. In the United States, someone needs a blood or platelet donation every 2 seconds. It’s also estimated that 29,000 units of blood are needed every single day. You’re allowed to donate blood every 56 days. If you’ve never donated before, one of the biggest places you can donate is through the Red Cross. You can enter your Zip Code on their Red Cross Website to find a drive to donate to.

Did you also know there is a World Blood Donor Day? It’s on June 14th!