Troops From Iraq War Can't Donate Blood

[Rose Siding]

ATLANTA -- Soldiers who served in Iraq will not be allowed to give blood for a year after returning home, because of a rare skin parasite that has infected 22 members of the military, federal health officials said Thursday.

The disease, called leishmaniasis, is rarely deadly but can cause serious skin lesions and can be spread through the blood supply. Since August of last year, 18 members of the military have caught the parasite in Iraq, plus two each in Kuwait and Afghanistan.

The Pentagon estimated the potential loss of blood donors at more than 12,000 people. But many of the servicemen would not have been allowed to donate anyway because they were in areas where malaria is endemic.

Those stricken by the parasite came from the Army, the Air Force and the Marine Corps and included active, reserve and National Guard members. Most were serving in northern or central Iraq. They were treated with intravenous drugs at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-iraq-blood,0,7013909.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

[Wickerman]

1. All the DU in their bloodstream is also not such a good thing

[donsu]

2. agree

nt

[Dover]

3. Not to mention the exposure to radiation..........

........

[saigon68]

7. This is serious

Radiation causes cancer

[zbdent]

4. Those 22 are less than twice the number of suicides by military

in Iraq alone!

There's an epidemic!

[Tempest]

5. What about sexual contact?

Can it be spread through sexual contact?

Will this mean returning soldiers can't have sex with their spouses/girlfriends/strangers for a year?

[Bertha Venation]

6. The Troops are in good company...

Sounds miserable. If you don't get dead in the service of your country, you can certainly catch some nasty crap where you're sent. And let's not forget about Gulf War Syndrome.

The troops are in good company in not being able to give blood. The Red Cross will not allow a blood donation from any man who admits to any sexual contact ever in his life with another man. AIDS, don'tcha know. But if you're an intravenous drug user, you can donate after not having shot up and having tested HIV- for a certain period of time. And if you're heterosexual, the RC doesn't deny your blood donation if you have unprotected sex. I don't even think they ask. :shrug:

[Paschall]

9. Not quite accurate

IV drug users are not eligible to donate blood, ever.
Those who are exposed to risk, such as heterosexuals who've had unprotected sex, are prohibited from donating for a year after potential exposure.

Not forgetting: "Those who since 1980, received an injection of bovine (beef) insulin made from cattle from the United Kingdom are not eligible to donate."

You're also not eligible to donate if you've had cancer and "your cancer was treated with chemotherapy, hormonal therapy or immunotherapy."

The Red Cross regs seem to be based on Food and Drug Administration risk categories.

http://www.redcross.org/services/biomed/0,1082,0_557_,00.html

[LeftistGorilla]

8. wait 5 or so years...

gulf war syndrome part two should be up and running...

[donsu]

10. sooner then 5 years

the troops are sick now

after Gulf I Clinton had put in that medicals had to be done on the troops before they were sent to war. the bushgang did not do this.

and they had to have medicals on their return from war.