Irradiated Blood Transfusion

Irradiated Blood Transfusion

Introduction

In healthcare setups blood transfusion has become a useful and common approach saving countless lives every minute; prolonging the life for people suffering with blood diseases and improving quality of lives. Blood transfusions using cells which are donated by healthy individuals (volunteering for good cause) helps replace RBCS, WBCS, platelets and other component of blood. Individuals with myeloma, leukemia, lymphoma and other blood disorders or diseases, for example a-plastic anemia and major thalassemia need blood transfusions on periodic bases. Other individuals who experience sudden accident or undergo major surgeries also require blood transfusions.

Medical practitioners use various approaches in deciding if transfusion will be appropriate or not, this approach is taken in order to best balance the risks associated with transfusion and benefits it may yield. Irradiated blood transfusion is one such approach that has emerged as huge benefit to medical practitioners. An unusual however potentially life threatening complication involved in transfusion is graft versus host disease, that might surface when white cell of donor start attacking the immune system of recipient. To prevent this from happening, blood irradiation technique is now being used. Blood components for patients receiving intensive chemotherapy undergoing stem cell transplant or considered to have impaired immune system are treated with radiation first, this prevents the WBCs from attacking the immune system of receiver's body.

This document discusses the irradiated blood transfusion by exploring indications for it; the content of the document is designed largely to elucidate “Indications of blood transfusion”.

Discussion

Healthcare professionals, specially nursing area, require having a lucid elucidation of clear guidance on situations in which the use of irradiated blood components is suitable. Healthcare professionals must recognize the disadvantages and advantages of its use in a particular situation. Each patient may share a different scenario hence may demand different requirements, therefore it is important to contextualize the usage of irradiated blood transfusion in regards with individual patients and scenarios.

Cellular blood constituents that need irradiation to lessen the threat associated with graft versus host infection consist of red blood cells, platelets, platelets-pheresis and granulocytes pheresis. Following are some of the noteworthy considerations nurses should keep in mind

1)Irradiated blood constituents are suggested for however are not restricted to the following receivers to minimize the threat of TA GvHD:

All people that have chronic graft versus host disease.

People with congenital cellular immuno-deficiency; thymic hypo-plasia, Wiskott Aldrich syndrome, Di-George syndrome, babies with congenital cardiac aortic arch disorders, reticular dys-genesis, severe combined immune deficiency, purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency, and cell mediated immune deficiency of un-specified etiology.

Autologous and allogeneic hematopietic stem cell transfusion recipients.

Individuals acquiring HLA compatible platelets.

Individuals who are being treated with purine analogs (Fludarabine, Cladarbine, 2 CDA, Deoxycoforycin, Penntastatin) and those with Hodgkin's disease.

Patients acquiring granulocyte transfusiossns

Any individual under-going intra-uterine transfusions including the neonates who have formerly undergone intrauterine transfusions.

Individual receiving blood transfusion from a blood/biological relative.

2)Furthermore other possible indications for doing the irradiated blood constituents include:

Infants that weigh below 1200 g at delivery

Individuals being remedied with cyto-toxic components for hematologic malignancies ...