blood disorders
Special Blood Donation and Transfusion Procedures
Autologous transfusion
In an autologous transfusion, donors are recipients of their own blood. For example, in the weeks before undergoing elective surgery, a person may donate several units of blood to be transfused if needed during or after the surgical procedure. The person takes iron pills after donating the blood to help the body replenish the lost blood cells before surgery. Also, during some types of surgery and in certain kinds of injuries, blood that is lost can be collected, washed, and immediately given back to the person (intraoperative blood salvage). An autologous transfusion eliminates the risks of incompatibility and blood-borne disease (unless the wrong blood is given by mistake). However, doctors do not use this technique as often as standard transfusion because the general blood supply is very safe due to rigorous donor screening and testing. In addition, older people may not tolerate donating blood before surgery because they are more likely to have side effects during donation such as Low Blood Pressure and fainting. Older people are also more likely to have fewer blood cells than normal (a low blood count) to begin with. Also, autologous transfusion is more expensive than standard transfusion. 