Blood Transfusions
Frequently Asked Questions
Who receives blood?
Over 4 million Americans receive blood transfusions each year for surgery or other medical treatment. Transfusions are used with accident victims, some patients needing surgery, patients with cancer, and other serious diseases.
Why would my doctor order a blood transfusion?
Blood transfusions are given to stabilize a serious condition or to save your life. Your physician is trained to know when blood transfusions are needed and how much blood is necessary.
How do I know if blood is safe?
A number of safeguards are in place to make sure the national blood supply is safe. The blood the hospital receives comes from volunteer donors. Before they give blood, donors must answer a variety of questions about their health and risk factors for disease. Donors are screened very carefully before they can give blood.
Once the blood is donated, it goes through extensive testing. Besides testing for blood type, separate screening tests are run to check for Hepatitis, AIDS, HTLV virus and Syphilis. The blood is then tested against the patient’s blood; this is called crossmatching.
What are my risks as a recipient?
If you are a candidate for a blood transfusion, the risks of not receiving the transfusion far outweigh the risks of receiving it. Side effects following transfusion might be minor changes in the body’s immune system causing such mild symptoms as fever, chills or hives, requiring little or no treatment. Immune reactions or antibodies occur in a small number of patients who receive blood.
It is very rare that disease is transmitted or red blood cells are destroyed, and it is seldom life threatening. The risk associated with transmitting the AIDS virus has received a lot of attention. However, for several years, all blood donated in the United States is tested for the AIDS virus, greatly reducing the risk. Many common activities, such as cigarette smoking, driving a car or pregnancy, carry far greater risks than those associated with blood transfusion.
How can I make sure a safe supply of blood is available to me or my family?
Encourage healthy Americans to donate blood. Millions of lives are saved each year by healthy donors who volunteer to give blood.
What are my other choices besides receiving blood from the community blood supply?
You may be able to donate your own blood in advance of a planned surgical procedure; this is called autologous donation. In this case, your blood can be collected and stored to be used if it is needed during your surgery. In intraoperative and postoperative autologous transfusions, blood lost during surgery is saved and returned to the patient.
To find out more about blood transfusions, ask your doctor or call the Beaufort Memorial Hospital Blood Bank Coordinator at (843) 522-5081.
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