UAB Using Whole Blood to Improve Trauma Care
When someone is experiencing severe blood loss, that blood needs to be replaced as soon as possible. Most doctors deliver this transfusion as a “balanced resuscitation,” combining equal amounts of red blood cells, plasma and platelets, which is how blood is separated and delivered to most U.S. hospitals. But a balanced resuscitation is not the same thing as using whole blood that has never been separated, according to Dr. Marisa Marques, medical director of transfusion services at UAB Hospital.
“You’re not able to reconstitute whole blood just mixing the other components,” Marques says, “because each one of them is somewhat diluted with anticoagulant and other substances.”
Most of the research on whole blood transfusions comes from the military and treating injured soldiers in war zones. It suggests that transfusing actual whole blood to care for hemorrhaging patients can lead to better outcomes. Patients may require less blood to be transfused, and they often recover faster. UAB trauma surgeon Dr. Daniel Cox says another advantage of using whole blood, rather than separated components, is that it saves time.
“For the very seriously injured patient, this has the potential to significantly improve the chances of that person surviving,” says Cox.
UAB Hospital recently joined a growing number of hospitals across the country that use whole blood to treat severe trauma patients. Dr. Marques says finding a supply was not easy. It is not available from the local American Red Cross (ARC), where UAB gets most of its blood products. The hospital ended up having to get it from an ARC blood bank in Oklahoma.
Marques says whole blood has to meet strict requirements. To ensure that the product can be used for most patients, she says donors have to be male with low-antigen, type O blood. And timing is key, as whole blood has a shelf life of about three weeks, which is about half that of packed red blood cells.
UAB receives 12 units every week, which is less than 5% of the hospital’s total blood supply. UAB trauma doctors say that since they started receiving the whole blood in August they have used just about every drop.
FBI Director Wray to resign at end of Biden administration
Wray told employees at an FBI town hall that he is resigning next month to "avoid dragging the Bureau deeper into the fray." President-elect Donald Trump called the resignation "a great day for America."
The U.S. is facing a severe housing shortage. Will Trump’s proposals help?
The U.S. is short approximately four million homes. Wharton economist Ben Keys traces the beginning of the housing crisis to the 2008 financial meltdown — and says climate change is making things worse.
Shot in secret, ‘The Seed of the Sacred Fig’ calls out Iran’s authoritarian regime
Earlier this year, Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof fled his country to escape an eight-year prison sentence. His new film centers on a middle class family grappling with Iran's social unrest.
Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 FIFA World Cup — a controversial pick
FIFA's selection of Saudi Arabia to host the World Cup was celebrated in the kingdom but criticized by human rights groups, who fear residents, visitors and migrant workers will be at risk of abuse.
Wisconsin kayaker who faked his death is back in the U.S. and in custody, police say
Ryan Borgwardt disappeared in August while kayaking in Wisconsin, but an investigation revealed he intended to fake his death and had fled to Europe. Police said he willingly returned to the U.S.
In South Korea, insurrection charges are closing in on the president
Police, prosecutors and investigators have deemed President Yoon Suk Yeol as a suspect in a rare investigation into a sitting president for possible insurrection charges.
