Bloodloss Flashcards
When was the first blood depot with type O blood used?
During the Battle of Cambrai in 1917
Who added citrate glucose solution to blood in order for it to be stored in 1916?
Roux and Turner
Why was adding citrate glucose solution to blood helpful?
It allowed it to be stored and so the blood donor did not have to be present during the transfusion
Who identified different blood groups in 1901?
Karl Landsteiner
What were the limitations of Landsteiner’s discovery?
The donor had to be present
Why did the identification of blood groups in 1901 help solve bloodloss?
In order for a blood transfusion to be successful, the bloodgroups of the donor and the patient had to match
Why was cauterisation not a good method to solve blood loss?
Cauterisation used burning to seal the wound
It was not a good method as it was extremely painful
How did tourniquets reduce bloodloss prior to effective blood transfusions?
A tourniquet would cut off blood supply to an area by using a metal clip to clip the arteries
What were the limitations of using tourniquets?
A person will die if their blood isn’t circulating, taking oxygen to different organs
Why did bloodloss remain a problem after pain and infection were solved?
More complex surgeries were being attempted resulting in more blood lost
Why were clamps, ligatures, tourniquets etc limited?
Once the blood had left the patients body, there was no way for the surgeons / doctors to replace it
Did any transfusions take place before the discovery of blood groups?
Yes
James Blundell transfused blood to 10 people between 1825 and 1830 but only half of them were successful
Blood tranfusions were a matter of chance
Why did blood transfusions not work until the late 1800s?
- Blood groups had not been discovered
- Blood hardened when it left the body
How was silk thread used to reduce blood loss?
Silk thread was used to tie off blood vessels with stitches rather than burning, so it was less painful
What were the limitations of silk thread?
- Prone to infection
- Had to be tied properly and efficiently in order to have any impact
