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Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Background/aim: This study aims to comprehensively analyze the distribution of ABO and Rh blood groups, as well as demographic characteristics and regional variations, using data from 9.5 million blood donors across Türkiye.

Materials and methods: In this multicenter, retrospective, cross-sectional study, data were collected from 9,587,592 healthy, voluntary donors who donated to the Turkish Red Crescent between 1998 and 2021. Donors met the criteria of being 18–70 years old, weighing over 50 kg, with hemoglobin levels above 13.5 g/dL for male and 12.5 g/dL for female. The data were evaluated based on age, gender, education level, and geographic region.

Results: The ABO blood group distribution was determined as follows: A (42.1%), O (34.0%), B (16.4%), and AB (7.5%). When analyzed together with the Rh factor, A Rh+ was the most common (37.1%), while AB Rh– was the least common (0.9%). Regional analyses showed that A Rh+ was highest in the Black Sea region, whereas the Aegean region had a notably high AB Rh+ rate. The Marmara region had the highest total number of donors, while Eastern Anatolia exhibited the highest donation rate relative to its population. Demographically, 82.0% of donors were male; the 18–34 age group represented the most active segment (50.5%), and high school graduates had the highest donation rate (31.2%).

Conclusion: This study provides a detailed profile of Türkiye’s blood donors, filling a gap in national blood group data. The findings support optimizing transfusion services, improving blood supply management, and refining donor recruitment strategies. Regional and demographic disparities highlight the need for targeted awareness campaigns. Addressing gender imbalances and increasing participation from underrepresented groups can enhance sustainability. Additionally, these findings contribute valuable data for clinical applications, epidemiological studies, and future healthcare policy development.

Author ORCID Identifier

LEVENT SAĞDUR: 0000-0002-2420-4089

AZİZ KARACA: 0000-0001-9408-5073

MUSTAFA GÜNÇIKAN: 0000-0003-3274-7574

MUSTAFA YILMAZ: 0000-0003-3266-4752

KEREM KINIK: 0000-0002-6913-5312

DOI

10.55730/1300-0144.6049

Keywords

Blood stock management, donors' demographic analysis, Turkish blood donors, Turkish blood groups

First Page

961

Last Page

970

Publisher

The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK)

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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