Are Bradycardic Donors More Likely to Have Adverse Outcomes During Blood Donation?

Abstract

Introduction: In order to decrease adverse donor reactions during blood donation, volunteers are screened to safely donate according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration standards. Volunteers must be normocardic, with a pulse between 50 and 100 beats per minute. Bradycardic volunteers with a pulse lower than 50 beats per minute who otherwise meet requirements may donate with physician approval. Blood donors in military settings tend to be younger and more physically fit than the average donor population, resulting in a higher percentage of bradycardic donors. The relationship between bradycardia and adverse donor reactions has not been well studied. Herein, we aim to compare post-donation adverse reactions and the ability to complete donation between normocardic and bradycardic donors.

Materials and methods: Institutional review board approval was obtained. Records from a single blood donor center located on a large military installation in 2019 were retrospectively reviewed for vital signs, demographics, hemoglobin, and donor reactions. Donors were categorized as normocardic or bradycardic. The two groups were statistically compared using a χ2 test.

Results: Of the 1,601 donors in the study period, 1,514 qualified for donation. Mean age was 26.6 years (range, 17-72 years), with a male to female ratio of 2.1:1. Of these, 1,478 were normocardic and 26 were bradycardic. There was no significant difference in adverse reactions between the two groups (5.6% in bradycardic donors versus 3.6% in normocardic donors, n = 1,514, χ21 = 0.39, P = .53) or percentage of incomplete donations (5.9% in bradycardic and 5.65% in normocardic, n = 1,514, χ21 = 0.003, P = .96).

Conclusions: Donors with bradycardia are as safe to donate as normocardic donors. In the absence of comorbidities, blood donor centers should ensure their policies consider donation for volunteers with bradycardia.