'Old blood' may be risky after surgery

[Celebration]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-03-19-old-blood_N.htm

Old blood may be bad blood, a study says today in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic found that heart surgery patients who got transfusions of blood that was more than two weeks old fared worse than those who received newer blood.

Researchers have long known that blood degrades over time, which is why the Food and Drug Administration does not allow it to be stored for more than 42 days — although with constant blood shortages throughout the country, it often is used within several days of being donated.

But some have questioned whether 42 days is too long. As blood grows older, it loses power to bring oxygen to tissues.

.................................................

In fact, the researchers write in the journal, "the relative risk of postoperative death is increased by 30% in patients given blood that has been stored for more than two weeks. These results may appear to suggest that blood should be classified as outdated earlier than current recommendations."

[aquart]

1. Whoa! That's life and death information.

[Celebration]

2. no kidding!!

Until something is done about this, I would suggest that you tell friends and loved ones that might be facing heart operations. This sounds like a big problem. I wonder about blood after accidents, etc. Not too easy to do studies on that. Sounds like they need to reduce the shelf life ASAP.

Will they let relatives donate their blood for a relative facing a heart operation?

[MikeDuffy]

5. If the maximum age of donated blood were reduced from 42 to 30 days

there would likely be the problem of having to use less appropriate types (or other blood factors) and even running out altogether.

Question to posters: DO YOU DONATE BLOOD? If so, how often? If a lot more people donated there ought to be a lot fewer problems of this nature with available blood.

[Warpy]

3. That's because the nitric oxide disappears quickly

from stored blood. An article came out a few weeks ago detailing the loss of nitric oxide, generally a highly poisonous compound, with the decrease in oxygen transport capability in transfused blood.

Medicalese at http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/News/2007/October/08100704.asp

[Celebration]

4. that's right, I remember that now

Of course this wasn't a controlled study, but this information raises so many questions. One doctor is quoted as saying it is better to leave a patient anemic than to transfuse blood.

[Warpy]

6. That was the feeling at my last job when I left almost 5 years ago

They wouldn't transfuse anyone unless it was either their own stored blood, blood that was salvaged, processed and retransfused during the op, or medically vital because the patient was displaying severe signs of anemia.

We'd just bump up the oxygen and feed them iron tabs and let their bone marrow do its thing.

Docs have been a little shy about transfusions since the 80s and the AIDS crisis. Most won't transfuse unless it's a question of survival for the patient.