Quote:
Originally Posted by A930Rocket
I’ve probably given 5 gallons of blood over the years. I don’t know why, but I always hold the bag of blood before they take it away. It’s weird to feel the warmth and weight of it.
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My next donation on May 19th is the 8 gallon mark!
Edit: I'm also CMV Negative (Explained below from the Red Cross web site) - so my blood goes to newborn/premies as they can't have blood which is CMV Positive.
https://www.redcrossblood.org/local-homepage/news/article/why-cmv-negative-blood-is-so-important.html
CMV Negative Blood Explained
What is CMV?
CMV (cytomegalovirus) is a common flu-like virus that up to 85% of U.S. adults have been exposed to by the age of 40. You may have already been exposed to CMV without knowing it, because most people infected with CMV have mild symptoms or no symptoms at all. However, CMV can be quite serious even fatal for babies and people with weakened immune systems.
How Do You Get CMV?
CMV is contagious. It is passed through close contact with bodily fluids such as blood, saliva, urine, breast milk and more. It is possible for CMV to be passed during an organ transplant or blood transfusion, when the donor is CMV positive and the recipient is CMV negative.
If a pregnant woman has CMV antibodies in her blood or contracts a CMV infection during her pregnancy, she can pass CMV to her baby through the placenta. CMV contracted by an unborn baby is known as congenital CMV.
What is CMV Negative Blood
As with other viruses, once someone has had CMV, their body retains the antibodies. So if you have ever had CMV, it’s likely you are “positive” for the antibodies. If you never had CMV, you haven’t produced antibodies against the virus and are considered “CMV negative,” and have CMV negative blood.
Why is CMV Negative Blood Important?
Although congenital CMV affects around 1 in 200 babies, many of them will not show any symptoms. Some will have symptoms such as premature birth, low birthweight, hearing or vision problems, and other developmental issues. It can also cause a potentially life-threatening infection in newborn babies whose immune systems have yet to fully develop. For this reason, babies needing transfusions as part of their medical care should only receive CMV negative blood from donors who have not been exposed to CMV.
The American Red Cross supplies CMV negative, pediatric-specific blood products to hospitals throughout the country every day. Since CMV is so common among adults, only a small number of donors are eligible to meet this need. If you are CMV negative, please consider donating blood as often as possible throughout the year.