Requirements/Restrictions for Blood Donors
| There are a few basic requirements that any prospective blood donor must meet: you must be in generally good health, be at least 17 years old (or 16 with parent’s consent), and weight at least 110 pounds.Apheresis donations (platelets, double reds) have additional requirements. You can read about those processes here.Because blood donations are so important to the public health, the FDA strictly regulates them. This means that certain people cannot give or must wait for a certain period of time until they can give. |  |
| Reasons you may be asked to delay your donation Blood exposure or transfusion – wait 1 year Cancer wait 5 years (if no recurrence) Taking certain medications: - Accutane wait 1 month after treatment - Antibiotics wait 3 days from last dose - Arava wait 3 months from last dose - Cortisone check for eligibility - Lupron Depot wait 1 month from last dose - Proscar/Propecia wait 1 month from last dose Cold or flu – wait until symptoms are gone for 48 hours Cold sore (fever blister) – wait until sore is crusted over Diarrhea – wait until symptoms are gone for 48 hours Heart attack – wait 1 year (tentatively) Heart surgery (closed ablation or stent) – wait 6 months Heart surgery (open) – wait 1 year Herpes – wait until lesions are gone Intranasal cocaine use – wait 1 year Lung disease – check for eligibility Pregnancy – wait 6 weeks after delivery Sexually transmitted diseases – wait 1 year after treatment Surgery – wait until full recovery Stroke – wait 1 year (tentatively) Tattoo – wait 2 months if in licensed facility in Tennessee, Arkansas or Mississippi - if tattoo was done in another state wait 1 year Piercings/acupuncture – wait 1 year Teeth-cleaning – wait 1 day Tooth extraction/root canal – wait 3 days Tick bite – wait 1 month Travel to malaria-risk countries – wait 1 year after return Veneral disease – wait 1 year after treatment Anti-coagulant therapy – consult your physician |
Reasons restricting you from ever giving AIDS or HIV positive Heart disease (if symptomatic or physically restrictive) Hepatitis (after age 10) Hodgkin’s disease Jaundice (after age 10) Leukemia Liver disease Melanoma Self-injected drug use (non-prescription drugs) Sickle cell disease (Sickle cell trait is accepted) Travel to or residence in certain locations: - UK countries, 1980-1996, for 3 months or more - Europe, 1980-present, for 5 years or more - Military bases in Germany, Belgium or the Netherlands, 1980-1990, for more than 6 months - Military bases in Italy, Sicily, Greece, Portugal, Spain or Turkey, 1980-1996, for more than 6 months |
To help ensure the safety of donors and our blood supply, prospective donors are given mini-physicals and asked questions about their health history. If you have questions about your eligibility to donate blood, please call 901.529.6320 or 1.888.LIFEBLOOD.
