Updates on blood donor screening policy on Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (Mad-cow Disease) and Malaria

The Hong Kong Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service has updated the blood donor screening policy on Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (Mad-cow Disease) and Malaria as below with effective from 15 September 2020:

Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (Mad-cow Disease)
Blood donors will be ineligible for donation if they have / had:

• spent a total of three or more months in the United Kingdom (U.K.) (i.e.: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, The Isle of Man, The Channel Islands, Gibraltar and The Falkland Islands) between 1 January 1980 and 31 December 1996;

• spent a total of five or more years in France or Ireland between 1 January 1980 and 31 December 2001; or

• received blood transfusion in the U.K. (i.e.: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, The Isle of Man, The Channel Islands, Gibraltar and The Falkland Islands), France or Ireland between 1 January 1980 and the present.

Malaria
If you have:

• travelled to a malaria-endemic area, recommend to defer donation until 3 months after return.

• resided in a malaria-endemic country, recommend to defer donation until after 3 years of continued residence in Hong Kong or other non-endemic countries.

• history of malaria, recommend to defer donation until 3 years after recovery.

For information on malaria-endemic area, please visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/malaria/travelers/country_table/a.html
https://www.who.int/malaria/publications/country-profiles/en/