Objective

- Individuals who do not respond accurately to questions about infectious disease risk factors at the time of blood donation represent a potential threat to the safety of the blood supply.

This study was designed to estimate the prevalence of undetected behavioral and other risks in current blood donors.

Design

- Anonymous mail surveys to collect demographic, medical, and behavioral information were administered to individuals who had donated blood within the previous 2 months.

Sampling weights were used in the analysis to adjust for differential sampling and response rates among demographic groups to provide prevalence estimates for the donor population.

Setting

- Five geographically and demographically diverse US blood centers.

Participants

- A stratified probability sample of 50 162 allogeneic blood donors.

Main Outcome Measures

- Estimated prevalence rates for risk behaviors that would have been a basis for deferral if reported at the time of the donor screening interview (deferrable risk).

Results

- Completed questionnaires were received for 34 726 donors (69.2% of the sample).

A total of 186 per 10 000 respondents (1.9%) reported a deferrable risk that was present at the time of their past donation, while 39 per 10 000 (0.4%) reported this behavior within the 3 months prior to donation.

Rates (with 95% confidence intervals [CIs]) of deferrable risk behaviors were 1.4 (95% CI, 1.2-1.6) times higher for men than women, 1.6 (95% CI, 1.3-2. (...)