health sectionhealth sectionApheresis involves removing blood impurities by removing the blood from the body, separating and discarding harmful substances from the blood and returning the good blood to the body. Unlike dialysis, which employs a similar method, apheresis takes longer because the extraction process takes place through the veins instead of a central line through the body. There are six types of apheresis used depending on the type of treatment needed. The duration of the procedure varies based on the amount of blood extracted. For example, a 4-liter extraction takes about two-and-a-half hours.
A flow cytometer is used to screen biological samples to detect medical conditions in patients. It has the ability to screen, sort and characterize cellular material in a short period of time. Flow cytometers consist of three main systems: fluidics, optics and electronics.
Blood donation to blood banks is an important contribution to any society. The term "blood bank" may sound a bit unusual, but it encompasses the important work done at these institutions.
Blood banks collect, store, and provide blood. Typically, these banks collect blood from voluntary blood donors. The banks then sort blood by type, check blood to make sure it is free of disease and then store it for future use. The main mission of a blood bank is to provide life-saving blood to hospitals and other health care facilities.
As new infectious diseases evolve, so do requirements for testing the blood stored in blood banks. The United States has made the specific tests it performs on its blood reserves a matter of public record. These tests are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which mandates them to prevent the spread of disease through blood transfusions. Other countries follow similar guidelines; in addition to blood type testing, all developed countries and the majority of developing countries screen donated blood for HIV, hepatitis and other infectious diseases.
Donating blood can be rewarding and life saving. Most donation centers keep only a three day supply in their inventory and when these supplies drop donors are alerted, according to aabb.org. With resources fluctuating hourly there is almost always a need for new donors.
Blood bank errors can be life-threatening to you or someone you love. When you receive a unit of blood during surgery, or when your newborn baby's blood is typed, you assume that the tech who ran the test was qualified. What you don't think about is the integrity of the materials used in testing, or the storage temperature of the blood until you received it. Quality control in the blood bank is a life-saving measure designed to protect you.
The American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) recently released the 26th edition of the Standards for Blood Banks and Transfusion Services, a publication outlining requirements for organizational structures of blood banks, research labs and transfusion centers. It also lists the requirements for allocation of resources and specifications for blood donors and products. Organizations collecting or transfusing blood in the United States can seek AABB's accreditation by meeting the standards outlined. The current standards are effective November 1, 2009.
Blood banks are laboratory centers that are responsible for the collection, processing, typing, safety and storage of blood for research and medical purposes. Most blood collected for medical use is transfused into patients who need blood because of trauma, for surgery or as therapeutic treatment of diseases, such as sickle cell disease and anemia and as a result of chemotherapy In all, 23 million units of blood are transfused annually, according to the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB).
Blood banks collect, process and distribute blood and blood products. They advertise in the media; solicit volunteers to set up blood drives in offices, at churches and universities and at events; run bloodmobiles; and provide fliers and pamphlets to educate people about blood donation. Unlike blood plasma centers, which pay for their supply, blood banks are donation-based. In different countries, blood banks provide different percentages of blood and blood products. In the United States and Canada, blood banks are responsible for around 99 percent of the blood supply. Many blood banks also take donations of umbilical cords (which contain blood…
Since 1915 when the first anticoagulant was discovered, the blood donation industry has produced numerous breakthroughs, including the discovery of RH factors and better anticoagulants, increasing the availability and reliability of blood for transfusions. Blood transfusions save 4.5 million American lives, annually.
In the USA in the 1930s and 1940s the interest in blood transfusions and blood banking increased dramatically in the medical field. This was because during and after World War II, American doctors abroad on the front line saw the effectiveness of blood transfusions firsthand. When they returned home, they pushed for an efficient system of blood banking and transfusions for their own patients.
Blood banks are stores of blood or blood components preserved for use in transfusions. Some blood banks also collect blood donations, but more often, collecting agencies such as the Red Cross carry out this process. Not all blood in a blood bank is donated: for example, plasma intended for manufacturing, rather than transfusion, is often collected from paid donors.
