Increasing the upper age limit for blood donation: Perspectives from older donors.

Background And Objectives: In the Netherlands, as of April 2018, the upper age limit for blood donation has been raised from 69 to 79 years, providing an opportunity to study older donors' perspectives regarding donating at older age. This study aims to explore whether older donors agree with the increase of the age limit, if they feel obliged to continue donating, to identify their motivators and barriers for donating blood and describe donation-related experiences and complications.

Materials And Methods: An online survey was distributed among Dutch blood donors aged 68-73 years.

Donor complication rates in whole blood, plasma and platelet donors: Age versus experience.

Background: Many blood banks use upper age limits for donors out of concern for a higher donor complication rate in older donors. Experienced donors are known to have lower donor complication rates, and older donors are often more experienced, confounding the effect of age on donor complication rate.

Study Design And Methods: We studied donor complication rates in whole blood, plasma, and plateletpheresis donors from 2012 to 2022.