Monitoring iron stores in Icelandic blood donors from 1997 through 2019

Objectives To estimate the frequency of iron deficiency (ID) and anaemia in blood donors in Iceland and the impact of serum ferritin (SF) testing policy change. Background Blood donations contribute to ID and/or anaemia in whole blood donors (WBD). SF may be used to monitor blood donor iron stores. Materials and Methods The study included WBD and new donors (ND) in the Icelandic Blood Bank in 1997–2019. SF was measured for ND and intermittently for WBD until October 2017, but thereafter for all WBD and ND at every visit. In January 2018, the SF threshold increased from 14 to 16 μg/L for ND and from 8 to 10 μg/L for WBD. Results The study included 85 370 SF results from 243 369 visits of 32 910 donors. Median SF was higher for males than females, both for ND (88.0 vs. 31.2 μg/L, p