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A list of medication to which deferral applies

  • You are temporarily prohibited from giving blood, plasma or platelets if you take any of the following medicines:
    • Dutasteride (Avodart, Prostatex, Combodart): wait 6 months after treatment ends
    • Finasteride (Proscar): wait 4 weeks after treatment ends
    • Valproate (Depakine, Convulex): only if not used for epilepsy: wait 2 weeks after treatment ends
    • Isotretinoin (Roaccutane): wait 2 months after treatment ends
    • Neotigason: wait 3 years after treatment ends
    • Gender affirmation hormone therapy: if you are a transgender individual beginning gender affirmation hormone therapy you must wait 3 months before donating blood, until your haemoglobin level adapts to the new hormone situation. Medical prescription is always required for intramuscular androgen injections, which must be administered in accordance with medical procedure (use of sterile needles and registered medicines).
    • Antiviral medication to prevent HIV infection (referred to as PEP or PrEP, post-exposure or pre-exposure prophylaxis): you are temporarily prohibited from donating. Following use of PEP/PrEP, the deferral period according to the risk situation that is the reason for using the medicine applies (see 9. Contact with human blood through pricking, cutting, spattering or biting accidents and 11. Sexual partners and risk situations).

      With this preventive medication, the risk of HIV infection in the case of a risk contact is negligibly small. If you do become infected, these antivirals can cause the viral load in your body to remains very low, and therefore the chance of you infecting someone else through sexual contact is small. However, the virus may still be transmitted via blood transfusion. There is also a realistic chance that our tests - as sensitive as they are - will not detect this low viral load.   

  • You may never give blood, plasma or platelets if you are HIV positive and take antiviral medication (ART: antiretroviral therapy).

  • If you are taking NSAIDs or an aspirin derivative you must wait for 3 to 6 days after the treatment ends before giving platelets. You will be eligible to give blood or plasma if the underlying reason for taking the medicine does not prevent you from giving blood.