History of the Central Blood Bank Apheresis Donation A blood center's supply of single donor platelets can mean the difference between life and death. Apheresis is a procedure that requires an even greater commitment from donors than giving whole blood.
Platelets are the disc shaped cells that stop bleeding.
The South Bend Medical Foundation Central Blood Bank has been using the apheresis procedure since 1990. During an apheresis donation, blood is drawn from a vein in the donor's arm. Instead of being collected in a bag, the blood is run through sterile tubing and into a centrifuge inside a machine called a blood cell separator. The centrifuge spins the blood so that the platelets are separated from the rest of the blood. The platelets are collected in a bag and the remainder of the blood is returned to the donor through a vein in the other arm.