Benefits Of Blood Warmer Cuff In Fluid Transfusions

By Mark Cooper


The medical industry has grown exponentially over the last couple of decades to include delicate procedures such as organ transplants and transfusion. While the start of these procedures may not have been effective during the pioneer years, rapid growth in technology has resulted in astonishing successes being recorded. When undertaking transfusion, most medical practitioners today recommend the use of a blood warmer cuff.

Before getting to understand the importance of the above mentioned device, you may want to discover some of the risks that come with transfusion of blood. This will go a long way towards helping you internalize why this device is a must have for your procedures. This is in the wake of several cases of unqualified doctors performing highly delicate procedures. Once you understand this, be sure to ask your doctor whether they use these devices.

The body fluid you donate is usually stored at very low temperatures in banks. This is to avoid rupturing of cells, which will make the stored product useless. Patients who require transfusion at high volumes are most likely to be affected by the cold temperatures of the stored products. This condition is known to lower normal body temperatures to levels that are potentially harmful to the body.

Hypothermia, however, is not a condition associated with all transfusions. Patients in need of only a few pints of blood are unlikely to suffer from hypothermia. There are cases however, where patients lose too much of their internal body fluids, such as during massive trauma. This calls for massive transfusions of fluids into the body of the patient, making warmers a useful equipment to avert hypothermia.

It is important however, that when warming blood, temperatures should be checked to avoid hemolysis. This is where red cells are destroyed before reaching their normal lifespan. Such a condition would be counterproductive to the transfusion procedure. Once these red cells are destroyed, it would be useless trying to carry out a transfusion since the patient would only be receiving cytoplasm and plasma.

The department of fluid transfusions uses a number of other devices. One among them are pressure infusion devices. They help to regulate the flow of blood in accordance to the pressure in the vessels. Using these devices calls for utmost precision, including strict adherence to the guidelines of the manufacturer. This helps to avert the rapture of catheter walls and blood vessels during transfusion.

One of the best things about these medical devices is that they are generally known to improve clinical results for patients. Imagine you are a patient that has been diagnosed with hypothermia after a medical procedure, you may just end up staying longer at the facility than the doctors had projected. This will eventually lead to accumulated bills. You do not however, have to worry about this because of superior medical equipment.

Patient warming practices are used in surgery centers, clinics and hospitals to improve the comfort of the patient and clinical outcomes. However, this is also one of the policies set by regulatory agencies, which doctors have to comply with. All the same, their use has more advantages than their disadvantages.




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