Complications Of Blood Transfusion

Complications Of Blood Transfusion

“How To Prevent Blood Transfusion Complications”

Answer. Following are the complications of blood transfusion:

• Febrile reactions: Itis the most common complication due to impurities like pyrogens in the blood or in infusion set.
  • Headaches, fever, chills and rigors, tachycardia, nausea are the features.
  • Transfusion is temporarily stopped or the flow is slowed down with administration of antipyretic drug to reduce fever.
  • Often transfusion of that unit needs to be discontinued.

“Causes Of Blood Transfusion Complications”

• Allergic reaction: Utrticaria and allergy to specifi proteins inthe donor’s plasma canoccur.
  • Usually, itis mild and is treated with steroid and antihistaminics.
  • In severe urticaria that unit of blood is discarded; new washed RBC’s and platelets are used.
• Acute hemolytic reactions: It is the most dangerous complication. It is due to ABO incompatibility.
  • Usually it is nonfatal but occasionally can be fatal.
  • It is commonly due to technical error at diffrent levels.
  • It amounts for criminal negligence in court of law.

“Symptoms Of Blood Transfusion Reactions”

• Transfusion-related graft versus host disease:
  • This very serious, very rare complication occurs due to recognition and reaction against host tissues by infused donor lymphocytes.
  • lt is common in immunosuppressed, lymphoma, leukemic patients.
  • Any type of blood products including leukocyte-reduced blood can cause the condition.
  • Features are pancytopenia, toxic epidermal necrosis, liver dysfunction with more than 90% mortality. It is difficult to treat.
• Congestive cardiac failure: It occurs if especially large quantities of whole blood are transfused in chronic severe anemia, pregnancy, elderly patients, in patients who have cardiac problems.