UH Develops First-of-Its-Kind Transfusion Management Software
“There’s no doubt that transfusions save lives, especially in trauma patients,” says James Hill, MD, a critical care and anesthesiology specialist at UH and System Medical Director for Transfusion Services and Blood Management; and Assistant Professor of Anestthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. But there can be harms that come from a transfusion – allergic reactions, anaphylaxis, fever, transfusion-related lung injury. But then there’s a whole host of things that are underneath the surface that we don’t traditionally think of as sequelae to transfusion, such as MI, renal failure, transfusion-related immune modulation. When you start giving blood that isn’t indicated, you’re raising the patient’s risk.”