BLOOD donation............?

i had HEP-A........about 19 yrs ago, now does any one know if i will be o.k. to donate blood?
sensible answers appreciated.......RIGGS.

Hepatitis A is caused by eating food and drinking water infected with a virus called HAV. It can also be caused by anal-oral contact during sex. While it can cause swelling and inflammation in the liver, it doesn't lead to chronic, or life long, disease. Almost everyone who gets hepatitis A has a full recovery.

If you live with or have had sexual contact with a person who has hepatitis, you must wait 12 months after the last contact to donate blood.

Persons who have been detained or incarcerated in a facility (juvenile detention, lockup, jail, or prison) for more than 72 consecutive hours (3 days) are deferred for 12 months from the date of last occurrence. This includes work release programs and weekend incarceration. These persons are at higher risk for exposure to infectious diseases.

Wait 12 months after receiving a blood transfusion (unless it was your own "autologous" blood), non-sterile needle stick/body piercing or exposure to someone else's blood.

Wait 12 months following a human bite, if it broke the skin.

If you were exposed to Hep A by the vaccine, then that is considered good -- generally, it means that the vaccine is working. Go ahead and give blood.

To make sure that this information is accurate, contact your locate American Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/index.html

I do not believe so, but check with your local Red Cross to double check.

From: http://www.redcross.org/services/biomed/...

Hepatitis, Jaundice
If you had hepatitis (inflammation of the liver) caused by a virus, or unexplained jaundice (yellow discoloration of the skin), since age 11, you are not eligible to donate blood. This includes those who had hepatitis with Cytomegalovirus (CMV), or Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), the virus that causes Mononucleosis.

Acceptable if you had jaundice or hepatitis caused by something other than a viral infection, for example: medications, Gilbert's disease, bile duct obstruction, alcohol, gallstones or trauma to the liver. If you ever tested positive for hepatitis B or hepatitis C , at any age, you are not eligible to donate, even if you were never sick or jaundiced from the infection.


I notice they do not specifically address hepatitis A, so you probably could call and ask.

No you are not eligible to donate blood.
http://www.redcross.org/services/biomed/...