blood transfusion
generally the process of receiving blood or blood products into one's circulation intravenously
AI overview
A blood transfusion is a medical procedure where blood or blood products are put directly into a person's bloodstream through a vein. This matters because it can help patients who have lost a lot of blood from injury or surgery, or who have certain medical conditions that affect their blood.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Research
194,776 papers- Blood transfusion.Seminars in hematology · 1999
- Blood transfusion.Nursing standard (Royal College of Nursing (Great Britain) : 1987) · 2000
- Blood transfusion support in pediatric cardiovascular surgery.Transfusion science · 1999
- Autologous blood transfusion.Missouri medicine · 1989
- Blood transfusion and surgery.British medical journal (Clinical research ed.) · 1985
via PubMed
Article
Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used for various medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood. Early transfusions used whole blood, but modern medical practice commonly uses only components of the blood, such as red blood cells, plasma, platelets, and other clotting factors. White blood cells are transfused only in very rare circumstances, since granulocyte transfusion has limited applications. Whole blood has come back into use in the trauma setting.
Red blood cells (RBC) contain hemoglobin and supply the cells of the body with oxygen. White blood cells are not commonly used during transfusions, but they are part of the immune system and also fight infections. Plasma is the "yellowish" liquid part of blood, which acts as a buffer and contains proteins and other important substances needed for the body's overall health. Platelets are involved in blood clotting, preventing the body from bleeding. Before these components were known, doctors believed that blood was homogeneous. Because of this scientific misunderstanding, many patients died because of incompatible blood transferred to them.