Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Blood Transfusion and Donation
Every year, millions of people in the United States receive life-saving blood transfusions. During a transfusion, you receive whole blood or parts of blood such as:
- Red blood cells - cells that carry oxygen to and from tissues and organs
- Platelets - cells that form clots to control bleeding
- Plasma - the liquid part of the blood that helps clotting. You may need it if you have been badly burned, have liver failure or a severe infection.
Most blood transfusions go very smoothly. Some infectious agents, such as HIV, can survive in blood and infect the person receiving the blood transfusion. To keep blood safe, blood banks carefully screen donated blood. The risk of catching a virus from a blood transfusion is low.
Sometimes it is possible to have a transfusion of your own blood. During surgery, you may need a blood transfusion because of blood loss. If you are having a surgery that you're able to schedule months in advance, your doctor may ask whether you would like to use your own blood, instead of donated blood. If so, you will need to have blood drawn one or more times before the surgery. A blood bank will store your blood for your use.
It sits within Blood, Heart and Circulation and Transplantation and Donation.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Blood Transfusion and Donation
20 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- Improving White Blood Cell Collection From Healthy DonorsNational Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC)
- Donor Lifestyle and Nutritional Status, Blood Component Quality, and Patient Safety (ESENCIA)Instituto Nacional de Perinatologia
- grouP O wholE blooD : storagE leSion impacT And infLammationEtablissement Français du Sang
- Autologous Cold-stored Apheresis PlateletsUniversity Health Network, Toronto
Research already completed
- Study of Transfusion-Transmitted InfectionsNational Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC)
- Full Assessment of Clinical Transfusion SupportChildren's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati
- Donor Iron Deficiency Study - Red Blood Cells From Iron-deficient Donors: Recovery and Storage QualityColumbia University
- Neuroimaging of Donor Iron Deficient StudyColumbia University
- Microbiome of Donor Iron Deficient StudyColumbia University
- Efficacy of Preoperative Autologous Blood Donation and Tranexamic Acid in Revision Total Hip ArthroplastyAin Shams University
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- About Blood DonationAssociation for the Advancement of Blood & Biotherapies
- Blood DonationMayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
- Blood Donation FAQsAmerica's Blood Centers
- Blood Donation ProcessAmerican Red Cross
- Blood TransfusionMayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
- Treatments for Blood DisordersNational Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Diagnosis and Tests
- Red Blood Cell Antibody ScreenNational Library of Medicine
Prevention and Risk Factors
- Eligibility RequirementsAmerican Red Cross
- Questions about BloodFood and Drug Administration
Related Issues
- Diversity in Blood TypesAmerican Red Cross
- Facts About Blood and Blood TypesAmerican Red Cross
- How You Can Help Medical Research: Donating Your Blood, Tissue, and Other SamplesNational Cancer Institute
- Precautions and Adverse Reactions during Blood TransfusionMerck & Co., Inc.
Statistics and Research
- Blood Facts and StatisticsAmerican Red Cross
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Blood DonorsNational Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Blood Substitutes and AlternativesNational Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Blood TransfusionNational Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Transfusion ReactionNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Blood Transfusion, Blood Safety, Blood Donors, Transfusion Reaction. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Blood Transfusion and Donation, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.