Blood donation rises by 4% in 8 months

TEHRAN –Blood donation in Iran has increased by more than four percent in the first eight months of the current Iranian calendar year which started on March 20, compared to the same period last year.

A total of 1,619,872 blood units were donated over the mentioned period, IRIB quoted Bashir Haji-Beigi, the Blood Transfusion Organization spokesman, as saying.

The official said that the highest blood donation growth was recorded in the provinces of Kohgiluyeh-Boyerahmad (almost 30 percent), Sistan–Baluchestan (more than 17 percent), and Alborz (over 11 percent).

“The continuous blood donation growth rate in the country has increased to over 56 percent, indicating a two-percent growth compared to the same period last year,” Haji-Beigi noted.

The official went on to say that the provinces of Semnan (over 68 percent), Yazd (around 67 percent), and Qom (almost 66 percent) hold the highest rates for continuous blood donation, respectively.

Referring to women’s share of blood donation in the country, Haji-Beigi said North Khorasan (over 8 percent), and Lorestan  (over 7 percent) provinces, had the highest blood donation by women.

4.7% rise in blood donation yr/ yr

A total of 2,327,997 Iranians donated blood over the past Iranian calendar year (March 2023-March 2024), an increase of 4.7 percent compared to the year earlier. 

Tehran and Fars provinces made the largest contributions accounting for more than 16 percent and more than 7 percent of the total blood donation, respectively, IRNA quoted Haji-Beigi as saying.

Last year, the highest growth in blood donation was recorded in the province of Lorestan with 22 percent, followed by North Khorasan with 16 percent, and Kohgiluyeh-Boyerahmad with approximately 13 percent.

The overall blood donation rate was over 54 percent in the country last year with Semnan (69 percent), Yazd (64 percent), and Qom (63 percent) provinces ranking the highest.

Women’s share of blood donation was equal to four percent. A total of 102, 907 women donated blood which had increased compared to the previous year. However, women are expected to get more involved in blood donation.

Women in Lorestan province, nine percent, had the highest contribution followed by North Khorasan, almost eight percent, and Sistan-Baluchestan, over seven percent.

Last year, the blood donation rate reached 27 per thousand people. The highest rate was recorded in Mazandaran province with over 40,000 people donating blood. Semnan province, over 39,000, and Yazd province ranked second and third.

MT/MG