Blood Transfusions - Safe Medicine?
Fleur Hupston
September 24, 2008

Patients have the right to be given accurate information about the dangers and costs involved in blood transfusions so they can make an informed choice.

Blood transfusions have often been given to patients unnecessarily or given to patients as a precautionary measure, causing death in many documented cases.

In his article Jon Barron states "blood cell transfusions in patients having cardiac surgery is strongly associated with both infection and ischemic postoperative morbidity, hospital stay, increased early and late mortality, and hospital costs. And significantly, the majority of those transfusions, ...., may in fact have been responsible for many millions of patient deaths over the last hundred years". . "Blood Transfusions May have Killed Millions" 5/12/2008, Jon Barron, Board member, Health Sciences Institute.

The Boston Globe Magazine reports that blood specialist Dr. Charles Huggins admits that blood “must be considered unavoidably non-safe.” He describes blood as “the most dangerous substance (italics mine) we use in medicine.”

This is backed up by a release by the New South Wales Government, in which the statement was made that "There is now increasing evidence for immunomodulatory effects following transfusion. We can no longer ignore the facts about blood and blood transfusion". BloodMyths, Clinical Excellence Commission NSW 23/01/2008.

Myth No. 1 - Blood - It's Safer Than It's Ever Been
Bacterial contamination, incompatibility reaction and transfusion related acute lung injury (TRALI) are still the most common and most immediately dangerous complications of blood transfusion.

Myth No. 2 - A Blood Transfusion Will Get Patients Home Sooner
There is emerging evidence that patients transfused after surgery stay longer in hospital and have more infections following discharge.

Myth No. 3 - Blood Transfusions Improve Healing
Current, emerging evidence shows that patients who receive blood transfusions are at greater risk of transfusion associated adverse outcomes such as infection, kidney failure, lung injury or death.
Myth No. 4 - Autologous (Pre-Donated) Blood is Risk Free

Pre-donated autologous transfusion is not risk free and there are a variety of adverse events associated with this practice. Use of autologous blood carries equal, if not greater risk of bacterial contamination..

Myth No. 5 - Blood - It's Free Anyway....
The true cost of blood transfusion is yet to be determined but we know that it is at least $200 (Aus) per unit to process.
The wise course of action for safe health is to research carefully why blood is transfused in the first place, the dangers of blood transfusions and what alternatives are available. The signing of a document (power of attorney) is a prudent step to take in advance. This will outline, in the case of a medical emergency , your choice of medicine and/or the blood transfusion alternative you wish to be administered.

Reprint Information

Reprinted with permission of Fleur Hupston. Available at: Blood Transfusions - Safe Medicine? Risks, Complications and Dangers of Transfused Blood

Thanks for this interesting article. I loved the point of miths about transfusions.

Thanks for giving such valuable information, regards.

Thank You for posting this valuable information. The concise format is helpfull in discussing this subject with others

I am a medical transcriptionist. I am constantly amazed at how freely blood is still used as a "just to be safe" measure, especially in the elderly. I just wonder, do doctors get information like this article? I know that Jehovah's Witnesses have a program (HLC) to educate them, but in some hospital systems the message does not seem to be getting through.