Thai Protesters Host a Bloodbath: What's the Risk?

(March 16) -- Thai protesters doused the front of government offices with gallons of their own blood and said they plan to continue a massive blood drive Wednesday unless the country's parliament is dissolved. Health officials from around the world are already pointing out the massive health hazards posed by the extremely unconventional expression of discontent.

Leaders of the protest group -- which is known as "Red Shirts" --- told the BBC they've taken hygienic precautions. A reported 10,000 people have had blood drawn, apparently beneath shaded tents and by trained professionals.

But the Thai Red Cross has refused to help with the procedures, saying the purpose doesn't align with its values.

"The blood of the common people is mixing together to fight for democracy," Nattawut Saikua, one of the protest leaders, told cheering supporters.

It could also be mixing together -- along with feces, which protesters have started to fling at government buildings -- to create an environment rife for the spread of contagious disease and potentially fatal repercussions for those giving blood.

A puncture made to an artery, rather than a vein, can cause paralysis. "People will lose a lot of blood and go into shock," warned Dr. Ubonwan Jarunreungrit with the Thai Red Cross.

Donors are also likely to be exposed to sunlight, heat and high stress and to suffer fatigue: All can cause fainting or stroke following a blood donation.

It's unclear how many needles the protesters have accumulated, though they've said that each donation is done with a fresh syringe. Here's hoping: Sharing a needle is an easy way to contract HIV or hepatitis.

Fortunately, those exposed to the blood during protests face minimal risk, for the most part: Risk of infection from exposure to HIV- or hepatitis C-infected blood is less than 1 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But hepatitis B, the less serious of the two, is transmitted much more easily; risk can be as high as 30 percent.

The CDC also notes that of all bodily fluids, blood is most likely to cause infection upon exposure.

Thailand has a relatively high rate of HIV infection: 2 percent of hospital donations in the country are infected with HIV, and 10 percent with hepatitis B or C, according to a Thai government official.

The Thai Red Cross is also criticizing the protest for wasting a valuable resource: life-saving blood that could have been used for in-hospital transfusions.

One unit of blood is around 2 cups. If the Thai protesters succeed at their goal of collecting 1,000 liters of blood, they'll have accumulated more than 2,100 transfusion units.

Thai officials deployed 100 specially dressed staffers to clean the areas earlier today and plan to incinerate the syringes used for the blood drive. The blood? It will be dumped into waterways and purified at a wastewater treatment plant.

Which might actually be the biggest safety risk. Human blood is a biohazardous waste product, and the World Health Organization advises that contaminated waterways can infect drinking water. In the United States, hospitals are prohibited from dumping large quantities of blood down the drain -- they need to adhere to strict guidelines on packaging, transporting and disinfecting it first.

Ironically, dozens of Thai hospitals have prepared extra beds and blood units for those who might be injured in the rallies. But they've amassed 5,300 units -- twice what Thai protesters are hoping to hurl during their demonstrations.