Factors associated with psychological and physiological stress reactions to blood donation: a systematic review of the literature

Exploring the Impact of Digital Health Tools in Enhancing Quality of Life and Psychological Adjustment in Long-term Blood Donors: A Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND

Blood donation plays a critical role in public health, yet long-term donors (donating at least twice per year, for at least three years) often face challenges related to psychological adjustment and quality of life. Digital health tools could offer innovative solutions to address these issues by providing personalized support, tracking, and mental health interventions.

AIM

This study investigates the impact of digital health tools on the quality of life (QoL) and psychological adjustment of long-term blood donors in Saudi Arabia, with attention to demographic factors influencing engagement and perceptions.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 498 long-term blood donors aged 18-60, recruited from blood donation centers across Saudi Arabia. Participants were recruited through social media platforms, university networks, and professional organizations to ensure a diverse sample in terms of background, long-term donation history (more than 10 times), and daily digital usage habits. Participants completed an online questionnaire incorporating the WHO Quality of Life-Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) and Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced Inventory (Brief-COPE) inventory to assess QoL and coping mechanisms. Descriptive statistics, two-sample t-tests, and ANOVA analyses were performed to examine differences in perceptions based on age, gender, and educational level.

RESULTS

The findings indicate a generally positive perception of digital health tools, with mean QoL scores for self-distraction (Mean ± SD: 3.33 ± 0.97), active coping (3.29 ± 0.97), and psychological well-being (3.31 ± 0.82). Significant differences were observed across age groups, with older participants reporting higher perceived benefits ( p < .0001). Gender differences were also significant, with females showing higher mean scores in psychological adjustment factors such as active coping (3.75 ± 0.62) compared to males (2.8 ± 0.81), p < .0001.

CONCLUSION

Digital health tools are perceived as beneficial for supporting QoL and psychological adjustment among blood donors, particularly for emotional and health management. Demographic factors such as age, gender, and education play a significant role in shaping these perceptions, highlighting the need for tailored interventions. Further research should explore longitudinal impacts to inform the design of more effective, culturally aligned digital health solutions for donor support.

Exploring the Impact of Blood Draws on the Intraocular Pressure of Older Adults: A Focus on Physiological Responses

Background/Objectives: This study investigated intraocular pressure (IOP) changes after a blood draw in older adults considering sex, age, and baseline IOP. Methods: Fifty-three subjects (54.7% females; age: 68.50 ± 4.46 years; Visual Function Index [VF14]: 94.50 ± 7.50 points; mean contrast sensitivity function (CSF) for both eyes in each spatial frequency [cdp]: 1.5 cdp [1.41 ± 0.20 log], 3 cdp [1.57 ± 0.29 log], 6 cdp [1.45 ± 0.39 log], 12 cdp [1.04 ± 0.40 log], 18 cdp [0.63 ± 0.31 log]) voluntarily participated. Subjects fasted for at least 8 h before attending the laboratory. First, IOP was measured in a seated position using a portable rebound tonometer. Ten minutes after the initial measurement, two 10 mL tubes of blood were drawn. Five minutes after the blood draw IOP was measured again following the same procedure as the initial measurement. We evaluated the differences using an analysis of variance. Results: Significant, but not clinically relevant, decreases were found in the right eye, with small effect sizes (p = 0.013-0.079, d = 0.35). Only males and subjects older than 68 years showed trends toward IOP reduction in the right eye. Subjects with baseline IOP ≥ 14 mmHg experienced significant IOP reductions in both eyes, with moderate effect sizes (p = 0.001-0.002, d = 0.56-0.69). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that a blood draw of 20 mL is safe for the IOP levels of older adults with baseline IOP between 11 and 21 mmHg. Variations in IOP were observed based on baseline IOP, sex, and age, suggesting the importance of personalized clinical assessments. The primary factor influencing IOP changes appears to be the baseline IOP level.

A virtual reality paradigm simulating blood donation serves as a platform to test interventions to promote donation

Effective interventions that support blood donor retention are needed. Yet, integrating an intervention into the time-pressed and operationally sensitive context of a blood donation center requires justification for disruptions to an optimized process. This research provides evidence that virtual reality (VR) paradigms can serve as a research environment in which interventions can be tested prior to being delivered in blood donation centers. Study 1 (N = 48) demonstrated that 360°-video VR blood donation environments elicit a similar profile of emotional experience to a live donor center. Presence and immersion were high, and cybersickness symptoms low. Study 2 (N = 134) was an experiment deploying the 360°-video VR environments to test the impact of an intervention on emotional experience and intentions to donate. Participants in the intervention condition who engaged in a suite of tasks drawn from the process model of emotion regulation (including attentional deployment, positive reappraisal, and response modulation) reported more positive emotion than participants in a control condition, which in turn increased intentions to donate blood. By showing the promise for benefitting donor experience via a relatively low-cost and low-resource methodology, this research supports the use of VR paradigms to trial interventions prior to deployment in operationally-context field settings.

Prior exposure to a sensorimotor game in virtual reality does not enhance stress reactivity toward the OpenTSST VR

Compared to the in-person Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), virtual reality (VR) variants reduce resource-intensity and improve standardization but induce stress with smaller effect sizes. However, higher cortisol reactivity is given for more immersive TSST-VRs. Immersivity depends on the VR-system, but perceived immersion may be targeted by exposure to, or interaction with the VR. We investigated whether stress reactivity towards the openly accessible OpenTSST VR can be enhanced by prior exposure to a sensorimotor game completed in VR as mediated by increased immersion. Therefore, N = 58 healthy participants underwent the OpenTSST VR or its inbuilt control condition (placebo TSST-VR, pTSST-VR). Beforehand, participants completed a sensorimotor game either in VR or in real life. Stress was measured by means of self-reports, salivary cortisol concentrations, and salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) activity. Perceived immersion was assessed with the Igroup Presence Questionnaire (IPQ). The TSST-VR-group showed higher subjective stress than the pTSST-VR-group. Even though area under the curve measures indicated significant differences in cortisol levels between TSST-VR and pTSST-VR, this effect was not replicated in omnibus-analyses. Likewise, sAA was not responsive to stress. Our data suggests the OpenTSST VR does not reliably trigger physiological stress reactivity. Likewise, participants playing the VR-game before exposure to the TSST-VR did not show enhanced stress reactivity. Importantly, playing the VR-game did not lead to increased immersion (indicated by the IPQ), either. The key question resulting from our study is which manipulation may be fruitful to obtain a comparable stress response toward the TSST-VR compared to the in-person TSST.

Blood donation during COVID-19 lockdown and its association with anger and stress: A cross-sectional study from Syria

BACKGROUND

The demand for blood donations in Syria was high as the country has suffered for 9 years from war, and this demand has substantially increased during and after the lockdown from the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to assess blood donations in Syria and their association with multiple factors.

METHODS

Online questionnaires were distributed to social media groups, with questions related to stress, anger, and COVID-19 distress.

RESULTS

This study included 1,423 participants, of which 899 (63.2%) were women. Only 48.5% have ever donated blood, of which 33.3% donated only once in their lifetime. Not having a good reason to donate blood was the main reason for not donating. Obtaining documents was the main reason for blood donation among people who donated blood (64.8%). Stress, anger, and fear of infection were not associated with blood donation and its patterns. Losing someone close and being endangered by war were associated with more frequent blood donations in contrast to being distressed by war.

CONCLUSION

COVID-19 distress, stress, and anger were not associated with the decrease in blood donation. Spreading awareness on volunteer blood donation is crucial to combat blood shortage during stressful times.

Machine learning-based prediction of fainting during blood donations using donor properties and weather data as features

Background and objectives

Fainting is a well-known side effect of blood donation. Such adverse experiences can diminish the return rate for further blood donations. Identifying factors associated with fainting could help prevent adverse incidents during blood donation.

Materials and methods

Data of 85,040 blood donations from whole blood and apheresis donors within four consecutive years were included in this retrospective study. Seven different machine learning models (random forests, artificial neural networks, XGradient Boosting, AdaBoost, logistic regression, K nearest neighbors, and support vector machines) for predicting fainting during blood donation were established. The used features derived from the data obtained from the questionnaire every donor has to fill in before the donation and weather data of the day of the donation.

Results

One thousand seven hundred fifteen fainting reactions were observed in 228 846 blood donations from 88,003 donors over a study period of 48 months. Similar values for all machine learning algorithms investigated for NPV, PPV, AUC, and F1-score were obtained. In general, NPV was above 0.996, whereas PPV was below 0.03. AUC and F1-score were close to 0.9 for all models. Essential features predicting fainting during blood donation were systolic and diastolic blood pressure and ambient temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure.

Conclusion

Machine-learning algorithms can establish prediction models of fainting in blood donors. These new tools can reduce adverse reactions during blood donation and improve donor safety and minimize negative associations relating to blood donation.

Incentives and limitations of Greek blood donors: Application of the Health Belief Model in the design of recruiting strategies

Background

Studies of the behavior of blood donors suggest that the examination of their incentives and reported barriers could be utilized in designing targeted recruiting strategies and awareness-raising campaigns.

Methodology

Data was collected via a questionnaire based on the Health Belief Model (HBM), aimed to examine reported incentives, limitations, benefits, and self-efficacy of 261 blood donors at Thriasio General Hospital from January 1 to March 1, 2020, after required permission provided. The analysis was performed by the use of the SPSS statistical software. In addition, a Greek translation of the K6+ distress scale was provided.

Results

Our sample consisted of 261 blood donors, the majority of which were men (88.5%), 40-50 years old (36.4%), high school graduates (49.4%), and married (53.3%). Heightened awareness of increased blood needs and blood shortages was mentioned. 92.8% of respondents believe that blood donation is an act of contribution to society or beneficial for their health (86.6%). The limited working hours of blood donation services are the main obstacle mentioned by the participants (32.8%), while 80.7% emphasized the need for public information campaigns. Based on the K6 scale answers score, most participants are classified in the intermediate-risk category for Serious Mental Illness (SMI).

Conclusion

The study of beliefs and incentives of blood donors is a critical factor in developing an effective recruiting strategy in a volunteering frame. Public information campaigns regarding the blood donation process and reminders aiming at the return of blood donors after the necessary time interval could facilitate this effort.

Alsagaby S, Mir SA, Alaidarous M, Bin Dukhyil A, Alshehri B, Banawas S, Alturaiki W, Alharbi NK, Azad TA, Al Abdulmonem W. Seroprevalence of Viral Hepatitis B and C among Blood Donors in the Northern Region of Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia

BACKGROUND

Hepatitis B and C viral infections, which are the most common cause of liver infection worldwide, are major health issues around the globe. People with chronic hepatitis infections remain at risk of liver cirrhosis and hepatic carcinoma, while also being a risk to other diseases. These infections are highly contagious in nature, and the prevention of hepatitis B and C transmission during blood transfusion is a major challenge for healthcare workers. Although epidemiological characteristics of hepatitis B and C infections in blood donors in Saudi Arabia have been previously investigated in multiple studies, due to targeted cohorts and the vast geographical distribution of Saudi Arabia, there are a lot of missing data points, which necessitates further investigations.

AIM OF THE STUDY

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C viral infections among blood donors in the northern region of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

METHODS

To determine the given objectives, a retrospective study was performed which included data gathered from serological as well as nucleic acid test (NAT) screening of blood donors. Clinical data of 3733 blood donors were collected for a period of 2 years (from January 2019 to December 2020) at the blood bank of King Khalid General Hospital and the associated blood banks and donation camps in the region. Statistical analysis of the clinical data was performed using SPSS.

RESULTS

The blood samples of 3733 donors were analyzed to determine the seroprevalence of hepatitis B and C among the blood donors in the northern region of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Among the total of 3733 blood donors, 3645 (97.65%) were men and 88 (2.36%) were women. Most of the donors were younger than 27 years of age (n = 1494). The most frequent blood group in our study was O-positive (n = 1534), and the least frequent was AB-negative (n = 29). After statistically analyzing the clinical data, we observed that 7 (0.19%), 203 (5.44%) and 260 (6.96%) donor blood samples were positive for the HBV serological markers HBsAgs, HBsAbs and HBcAbs, respectively, and 12 (0.32%) blood samples reacted positively to anti-HCV antibodies. Moreover, 10 (0.27%) and 1 (0.027%) samples were NAT-HBV positive and NAT-HCV positive, respectively.

CONCLUSION

In the current study, low prevalence rates of HBV and HCV were observed in the blood donors. Statistical correlations indicated that both serological tests and NATs are highly effective in screening potential blood donors for HBV and HCV, which, in turn, prevents potential transfusion-transmitted hepatitis.

Blood donation barriers and facilitators of Sub-Saharan African migrants and minorities in Western high-income countries: a systematic review of the literature

OBJECTIVES

The present study aimed to gain more insight into, and summarise, blood donation determinants among migrants or minorities of Sub-Saharan heritage by systematically reviewing the current literature.

BACKGROUND

Sub-Saharan Africans are under-represented in the blood donor population in Western high-income countries. This causes a lack of specific blood types for transfusions and prevention of alloimmunisation among Sub-Saharan African patients.

METHODS/MATERIALS

Medline, EMBASE, PsycINFO and BIOSIS were searched for relevant empirical studies that focused on barriers and facilitators of blood donation among Sub-Saharan Africans in Western countries until 22 June 2017. Of the 679 articles screened by title and abstract, 152 were subsequently screened by full text. Paired reviewers independently assessed the studies based on predefined eligibility and quality criteria.

RESULTS

Of the 31 included studies, 24 used quantitative and 7 used qualitative research methods. Target cohorts varied from Black African Americans and refugees from Sub-Sahara Africa to specific Sub-Saharan migrant groups such as Comorians or Ethiopians. Main recurring barriers for Sub-Saharan Africans were haemoglobin deferral, fear of needles and pain, social exclusion, lack of awareness, negative attitudes and accessibility problems. Important recurring facilitators for Sub-Saharan Africans were altruism, free health checks and specific recruitment and awareness-raising campaigns.

CONCLUSION

The findings of this review can be used as a starting point to develop recruitment and retention strategies for Sub-Saharan African persons. Further research is needed to gain more insight in the role of these determinants in specific contexts as socioeconomic features, personal histories and host country regulations may differ per country.