Blood supply in emergency cases A brief review

Background: Blood transfusion services are a vital and integral part of modern healthcare. The decision to transfuse a patient should be considered on the basis of risks and benefits as well as alternative treatments available to avoid over transfusion or under transfusion and adverse effects that may occur. Objective: This review aims to determine the role of blood supply in emergency cases. Methods: A total of 20 relevant kinds of literature were studied regarding type of blood supply. The data collection for eligible articles were conducted from 2008 to 2018. Different database and manual search methods were used to find the topic-related articles. Results: Type of blood component transfused in critically ill patients included whole blood (WB), packed red cells (PRC), fresh frozen plasma (FFP), thrombocyte concentration (TC), and cryoprecipitate. In the pre-transfusion setting, some relevant steps need to be carried out prior to the transfusion process as follows: blood type determination, antibody screen, serologic cross-match, and computer/electronic cross-match. However, the urgent need for transfusion may preclude the performance of usual testing protocol. If blood become an issued in an emergency situation and there is no time for cross-matching, group O Rh-negative packed red cells can be released and the clinician must sign a release authorizing and accepting responsibility for using incompletely tested products. Conclusion: Group O packed red cells are selected for patients where transfusion cannot be postponed until their ABO and Rh type can be determined with minimal risk for complication. Keywords: Blood component, emergency case, packed red cells