Want to donate platelets but can't sit that long

October 5, 2024 11:29 AM

When I donated blood platelets the staff fed my weight, height, age, hemoglobin level, etc into a machine that told them it would take 97 minutes. That sounded OK, but when I actually did it, the first 30 minutes was fine, the next 30, I got squirrely, and the rest of the time, I was super restless and uncomfortable and almost told them to stop.

I subsequently told them that I'd be happy to donate platelets again, but only if I could do it for an hour, tops. They shrugged and just said the machine said 97 minutes, so that's what they have to do. I said they could either get *some* platelets from me, or *no* platelets. They shrugged again.

I don't know anything about the biomechanics of pheresis, but is this calculated time interval for donation an actual important thing, or is it just an instance where workers do whatever the software tells them to do and they could be flexible if they wanted to?

Fwiw, I'm NOT interested in tips and techniques for staying calm and centered during donation intervals (e.g. podcasts, movies, etc.). I just want to understand the issue about the necessity (or not) of adhering to the calculated time interval.

posted by jasper411 to Health & Fitness (8 answers total)

Best answer: Logistically, platelets (and other blood products) are packaged in standard units that are given to one patient. Platelets that are collected by plateletpheresis are packaged as a single standard unit coming from one donor. So they need to get a whole unit of platelets from you, which can take a while. I doubt the staff have any leeway in this and there probably isn't any system to even make use of less than a unit of platelets. So in this case, some platelets, but less than a unit, is probably equivalent to no platelets.

Platelets are also separated from whole blood donations and then combined with others to make a unit of platelets, but this is not quite as good as platelets from one donor because it increases the long term risk of immune reactions. But that means you are still giving platelets if you choose to donate whole blood instead.
posted by ssg at 11:46 AM on October 5, 2024 [9 favorites]

Best answer: All blood products meant for transfusion in the clinical setting are packaged in standardized sizes.

From the Red Cross website: "The minimum yield specification of a standard apheresis platelet in the United States is 3.0 x 1011 platelets per unit."

So at the donation site they have to take at least enough blood out of you to yield the required minimum number of platelets per unit and then put the rest of the blood back into you, a process which takes as long as it takes. The staff at the donation center have zero control over that and aren't at liberty to change their standard work practices.

Edited to add that I've given platelets before and it was really irritating to stay still for that long so I feel you! Thank you for donating at all. You saved lives.
posted by jesourie at 11:53 AM on October 5, 2024 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thank you both, that's exactly the information I was looking for! I'll just focusing on giving whole blood, which only takes about 15 minutes, though I can only do it once every two months.
posted by jasper411 at 12:05 PM on October 5, 2024 [1 favorite]

My blood type means I'm a universal donor for platelets so I've donated a whole bunch of times. What you're feeling is more likely the physical reaction to the anti-coagulant they're adding when they put the rest of your blood back in to your body. I've found that if I'm not hydrated or haven't eaten well a couple of hours before then I have an uncomfortable donation. Also, take a Tums (they generally have them there) before you donate, and again while you're donating (the citrate binds to calcium, so you want to replenish it).
posted by Runes at 12:23 PM on October 5, 2024 [7 favorites]

Can you check for different donation centers? When I donated platelets they had tvs in front of each couch and you could watch a movie while donating. The minutes flew by.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 4:53 PM on October 5, 2024

Sounds like they liked your platelet count and signed you up for a triple donation. I too have a good platelet count and when the blood center gets my measurements they always ask me if I can "do a triple", and it takes around the time you describe.

You can go back to donating whole blood if you want, otherwise be very clear with them if you're donating platelets -- "I cannot do a triple donation. I cannot be still that long. Can you accommodate this?"
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 7:23 PM on October 5, 2024

Did you have a needle in just one arm or in both? If you have a needle in both arms, it goes a lot faster because they can draw from one arm and return the centrifuged non-platelet blood components back into the other one simultaneously. I did the double needle donation once and hated it because I couldn’t scratch my nose, read a book, use my phone, etc. so subsequently I always requested single needle donation, but the drawback is that it then takes longer because it goes in two phases—first withdrawing and then returning, which have to happen in sequence since they’re going through the same needle.

In my experience, it’s faster for me if I am warm, very well hydrated, and keeping up with squeezing the ball regularly. I feel better if I pound the Tums and/or if I tell them as soon as I’m feeling weird, in which case they slow down the machine so I’m not getting so much anticoagulant as quickly, which ends up with the donation taking more time but me not feeling sick.
posted by music for skeletons at 9:20 PM on October 5, 2024 [1 favorite]

I suggest headphones with tunes or an audio book.
posted by SemiSalt at 5:06 AM on October 6, 2024