Transfusion Medicine - Krafts

Question 1

What are the contents of Whole Blood?

Answer 1

• Red cells
• plasma
• white cells (nonfunctional)
• platelets (nonfunctional)

Question 2

What is whole blood used for?

Answer 2

• Patients who are actively bleeding and who have lost more than 25% oftheir blood volume.
  
  • “massive bleed”

Question 3

What are the contents of Red blood cells?

Answer 3

• Red cells with:
  
  • little plasma
  • few white cells
  • few platelets

Question 4

What are Red blood cells used for?

Answer 4

• Patients who are anemic, but have a normal blood volume.

Question 5

What are the contents of Leukoreduced red blood cells?

Answer 5

• Red cells with
  
  • very little plasma
  • virtually no white cells or platelets

Question 6

What are Leukoreduced red blood cells used for?

Answer 6

• Patients who have had repeated febrile transfusion reactions
  
  • which may be due to anti-leukocyte antibodies to the recipient
• Patients who will be getting lots of transfusions
  
  • to cut down on alloimmunization to HLA antigens

Question 7

What are the contents of Frozen red blood cells?

Answer 7

• Red cells with
  
  • a few white cells
  • no plasma
  • no platelets

Question 8

What are Frozen red blood cells used for?

Answer 8

• patients with rare blood types
• can keep red cells frozen for over 10 years

Question 9

What are the contents of Granulocytes?

Answer 9

• Neutrophils with some:
  
  • lymphocytes
  • platelets
  • red cells

Question 10

What are Granulocytes used for?

Answer 10

• Patients with severe neutropenia
• Infection unresponsive to antibiotics

Question 11

What are the contents of Platelets?

Answer 11

• Platelets with:
  
  • plasma
  • few red cells & white cells

Question 12

What are Platelets used for?

Answer 12

• Bleeding due to thrombocytopenia
• Platelet abnormalities

Question 13

What are the contents of Fresh frozen plasma?

Answer 13

• Plasma
  
  • including all coagulation factors and complement

Question 14

What is Fresh frozen plasma used for?

Answer 14

• Bleeding due to multiple factor deficiencies
  
  • DIC
  • liver failure

Question 15

What are the contents of Cryoprecipitate?

Answer 15

• Fibrinogen
• Factor VIII
• Factor XIII
• vWF

Question 16

What is Cryoprecipitated used for?

Answer 16

• Hemophilia A
• von Willebrand’s Disease
• Congenital Factor XIII Deficiency
• Decreased fibrinogen

Question 17

What are the contents of Albumin?

Answer 17

• Albumin
  
  • and a little bit of other plasma proteins

Question 18

What is Albumin used for?

Answer 18

• Volume expansion in patients with low blood volume
  
  • also have decreased levels of plasma proteins
    
    • e.g. patients in shock, nephritic syndrome
• Albumin exerts oncotic pressure which helps keep fluid inside vessels
• The use of albumin is somewhat controversial.

Question 19

What are the contents of IVIG?

Answer 19

• IgG mostly
  
  • some preparations are specific for a certain infectious agent (like chicken pox)

Question 20

What is IVIG used for?

Answer 20

• Disease prophylaxis
• Replacement therapy in primary immunodeficiency states
• Patients with autoimmune disorders
• Patients with GVHD after bone marrow transplant