Search

Background and objectives: In France, blood donation deferral for men who have sex with men (MSM) was reduced from permanent to 12 months in July 2016. Assessing noncompliance (rate and reasons) with this criterion is important to maintain a high level of viral safety in blood products. Materials and methods: An anonymous online survey (Complidon) of a sample of blood donors was conducted in 2017. Data were post‐stratified to be representative of all those who donated blood between July 2016 and December 2017. A multivariable analysis was performed to assess factors associated with noncompliance. Results: Among male donors, 0·73% [95% CI: 0·63–0·83] reported having sex with men in the 12 months preceding their donation. Factors associated with noncompliance were as follows: young age, a low educational level, concerns about privacy, and better knowledge of donor selection criteria and the window period than compliant men. More than half of noncompliant MSM donors (57·6% [95% CI: 50·6–64·3]) felt that sexual orientation should not be a criterion for donation, 47·2% [95% CI: 40·4–54·0] did not disclose their male‐to‐male sexual relations in order to avoid being excluded from donating, 40·5% [95% CI: 34·0–47·4] reported using condoms and 21·8% [95% CI: 16·7–27·9] had the same male partner for at least 12 months. Conclusion: Complidon showed that compliance with blood donation criteria in MSM was high, but not optimal, especially among younger men. HIV residual risk did not increase after the implementation of 12‐month deferral. Data from Complidon helped French policymakers to assess the additional HIV risk posed by increased access to blood donation for MSM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Blood donor selection, consisting of a pre-donation questionnaire and interview, excludes potential donors who may be at risk of transfusion-transmissible infections. Assessing the reasons for noncompliance with blood donor selection criteria is important to maintain a high level of viral safety of blood products.Study Design and Methods: An anonymous French online survey of a sample of blood donors (Complidon) was conducted from September to December 2017. Data were poststratified to be representative of all donors who donated blood between July 2016 and December 2017.Results: Of 420,190 solicited donors, 108,386 completed the survey (26%). Overall, noncompliance was estimated at 5.6%. The least respected criteria regarded sex with more than one partner during the previous 4 months for donors (1.9%) and for donors' partners (1%), travel-related criteria (1.2%) and sex between men during the previous 12 months (0.73% of men). Reasons for noncompliance differed according to criteria. Donors who were non-compliant to sexuality-based criteria mainly said they did not want to be excluded or that the questions were too personal. Conversely, donors who were exclusively non-compliant to criteria other than sexuality-based criteria more often mentioned their non-compliance during the pre-donation interview but were nevertheless authorized to donate blood.Conclusion: Despite noncompliance to blood donor criteria being relatively low in France, it still represents a threat to blood safety. Accordingly, improved communication is important to ensure that donors fully understand each selection criterion and to emphasize to health professionals the importance of listening carefully without judging during pre-donation interviews. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]