A platelet donation is a special type of Gold blood donation that involves collecting platelets from a donor’s blood and returning the remaining blood components to them:
What are platelets?
Platelets are tiny cells in your blood that help it clot and stop bleeding.They’re a vital part of cancer treatments, organ transplants, and other surgical procedures.
How does it work?
A machine called a blood cell separator (Aphersis Machine) draws a small amount of blood from your arm, spins it rapidly, and separates the platelets from the other blood components. The remaining blood components are returned to you.
How much can I donate?
A single platelet donation can yield several transfusable units, which is enough for up to three patients. This is because you’re giving anywhere from 4 to 12 times as many platelets as you would in a normal blood donation.
How often can I donate?
You can donate platelets up to 24 times a year, compared to a maximum of 4 times a year for a whole blood donation.
What can I expect?
Most donors feel fine after donating, very few may experience an upset stomach, feel faint or dizzy, or have bruising, redness, or pain where the needle was inserted.
Platelets are in high demand because they can only be stored for a few days (5Days). Every 15 seconds someone needs platelets, so regular donations are always needed.
