blood disorders
Precautions and Adverse Reactions During Blood Transfusion
Fever
Fever may be caused by a reaction to the transfused white blood cells or to chemicals (cytokines) released by the transfused white blood cells. For this reason, most hospitals in the United States remove white blood cells from the transfused blood after it is collected. In addition to an increase in temperature, the person has chills and sometimes headache or back pain. Sometimes the person also has symptoms of an allergic reaction such as Itching or a rash. Usually,acetaminophento reduce fever is the only treatment needed. People who have had a fever and need another transfusion may be givenacetaminophenbefore the next transfusion. 