Blood Transfusion: Indications, Methods and Results

Abstract

fusion, since the operation was placed on a practical basis by the work of Crile1 and Carrel, shows that this procedure has not developed a wide use in medicine and surgery. While recent clinical experience confirms the great value of transfusion in some conditions, it has also emphasized the limitations of the operation. It is not my intention to discuss the whole subject at this time but I wish to consider a few practical points in regard to the use of transfusion and the best methods of operation.

What’s new in transfusion policies?

“…For many years, the threshold generally used to guide transfusion practice was a hemoglobin concentration of 10 g/dL and a hematocrit of 30 %, the so-called 10/30 rule, derived from John Lundy's clinical experience in the 1940s [2]. Transfused blood was considered a perfect substitute for blood loss and a powerful treatment for anemia, with all its adverse consequences [3]. Nevertheless, the risks related to blood transfusion were well recognized, including errors in crossmatching, risks of transmission of pathogens, transfusionassociated circulatory overload (TACO), storage-lesion consequences, transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI), and transfusion-related immunomodulation (TRIM), which may be associated with an increased incidence of infectious complications.…”