Saving life is surely a noble deed
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Moondoong, of course! What is not widely known however is that there are safer transfusions that do not contain blood that can be given. These do not carry the risk of AIDS, hepatitis, malaria etc.
When there is severe blood loss, the greatest need is to restore the fluid volume. No doubt you realize that our blood is actually over 50 percent water; then there are the red and white cells, and so forth. When much blood is lost, the body itself pours large reserves of blood cells into the system and speeds up production of new ones. But fluid volume is needed. Plasma volume expanders that contain no blood can be used to fill that need, and we accept these. Volume expanders have been used on thousands of persons, with excellent results.
Here are some quotes from some non hysterical authorities.
"We must conclude that currently there are many patients receiving blood components who have no chance for a benefit from transfusion (the blood is not needed) and yet still have a significant risk of undesired effect. No physician would knowingly expose a patient to a therapy that cannot help but might hurt, but that is exactly what occurs when blood is transfused unnecessarily." —Transfusion-Transmitted Viral Diseases, 1987.
Though most surgeons have claimed that they gave blood only when absolutely necessary, after the AIDS epidemic arose their use of blood dropped rapidly. An editorial in Mayo Clinic Proceedings (September 1988) said that "one of the few benefits of the epidemic" was that it "resulted in various strategies on the part of patients and physicians to avoid blood transfusion." A blood-bank official explains: "What has changed is the intensity of the message, the receptivity of clinicians to the message (because of an increased perception of risks), and the demand for consideration of alternatives." —Transfusion Medicine Reviews, October 1989.
Volume replacement can be accomplished without using whole blood or blood plasma.* Various nonblood fluids are effective volume expanders. The simplest is saline (salt) solution, which is both inexpensive and compatible with our blood. There are also fluids with special properties, such as dextran, Haemaccel, and lactated Ringer's solution. Hetastarch (HES) is a newer volume expander, and "it can be safely recommended for those [burn] patients who object to blood products." (Journal of Burn Care & Rehabilitation, January/February 1989) Such fluids have definite advantages. "Crystalloid solutions [such as normal saline and lactated Ringer's solution], Dextran and HES are relatively nontoxic and inexpensive, readily available, can be stored at room temperature, require no compatibility testing and are free of the risk of transfusion-transmitted disease." —Blood Transfusion Therapy —A Physician's Handbook, 1989.
Little children too? "Forty-eight pediatric open heart surgical procedures were performed with bloodless techniques regardless of surgical complexity." The children were as small as 10.3 pounds (4.7 kg). "Because of consistent success in Jehovah's Witnesses and the fact that blood transfusion carries a risk of serious complications, we are currently performing most of our pediatric cardiac operations without transfusion." —Circulation, September 1984.
Surgeons have observed that good attitude is another factor with Jehovah's Witnesses. "The attitude of these patients has been exemplary," wrote Dr. Cooley in October 1989. "They do not have the fear of complications or even death that most patients have. They have a deep and abiding faith in their belief and in their God." http://www.jw.org/en/publications/b...a-4f69af1c9a65&insight[search_result_index]=1
