This is the ‘universal donor’ blood type which is vital in emergency trauma care, when there is not time to check the patient’s blood type before transfusion is started.įunding for the trial has been provided by NHSBT, the Air Ambulance charities, and the Ministry of Defence. “I really hope the new trial will work and that more lives can continue to be saved through using whole blood transfusions.” What will the trial involve?Īll of the blood used will come from group O Rh negative donors. “Ollie has always been aware and that he is here today due to the blood and plasma provided by generous donors and the amazing team that worked on him. Mum Rachel James, 47, of St Braivels, near Chepstow in Gloucestershire, said: “He was urgently given all the blood products they carried. Ollie, now aged 19, is well and works as a trainee manager. He was taken to Southmead Major Trauma Unit in Bristol where he spent weeks in intensive care. The Air Ambulance team said they had no doubt that without this Ollie would not have survived. He suffered liver damage and lost around six units of blood after being in collision with a van while riding his bike in June 2019. Ollie Berry was aged 16 when he needed life-saving blood and plasma transfusions by Great Western Air Ambulance Charity.
#PLATELETS ARE CELL FRAGMENTS. FULL#
However, only a full randomised controlled trial such as SWIFT can provide the definitive answers. There is already past evidence that whole blood could lead to reduced mortality and reduce the amount of blood needed after patients arrive at hospital (3). And it could make the transfusion process easier and reduce risk, a crucial benefit in difficult and fast-moving incidents. It could enable faster treatment, at a time when every minute counts. Currently, Air Ambulance patients, and soldiers needing battlefield transfusions, can receive plasma and red blood cells, but not platelets.Īdditionally, carrying and transfusing one blood product could also be lighter and simpler. This means they are very difficult to use outside of hospitals. Platelets are difficult to store – they have a short five-day shelf life, must be stored between 20C and 24C, and need constant gentle movement to help them stay oxygenated. Platelets are the cell fragments which help the blood to clot. Whole blood may work better because it contains platelets. Previous studies, including on military casualties in Afghanistan, have indicated whole blood could have better outcomes for trauma patients, including a greater chance of survival. It includes all the different blood components together, such as red blood cells, plasma, and platelets (2). This is blood as it taken from the arm of a donor. However during the SWIFT trial they will also carry ‘whole blood’. Why is this trial needed?Īir Ambulances have carried red blood cells since 2012. If the trial shows patient benefit, it could reduce trauma deaths in civilian accidents and also on the battlefield, and in any situation where delaying a transfusion by seconds or minutes could be critical.
0 kommentar(er)
