People who’ve received a blood transfusion can breathe a bit easier: A new study finds no evidence that degenerative brain disorders can be transmitted via donated blood.
“This study provides reassurance to individuals who have received blood transfusions from patients with Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease,” said Dr. Irving Gomolin, a geriatrician who reviewed the Swedish study findings.
“It demonstrates that the transmission of these diseases via blood either is not biologically possible or, at worst, must be exceedingly rare,” said Gomolin. He is chief of geriatric medicine at Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, N.Y.
