27 February 2018 (Tuesday) - Transfusion News email

The nice people at Transfusion News sent their update today. Some is interesting, some patently obvious, but it is good CPD delivered to my in-box for which I am grateful.

Intravenous Iron Supplementation Increases Hemoglobin and Iron Levels in Female Blood Donors

February 20, 2018
Since iron deficiency in blood donors is a common problem and compliance for taking oral iron supplements may be challenging, researchers in Denmark investigated the feasibility of giving intravenous iron to donors. Researchers randomized 85 first-time female blood donors in a double-blind, prospective clinical trial comparing iron isomaltoside (1000 mg) to a placebo infusion of [Read More]

Anemia During Pregnancy Increases the Risk of RBC Transfusions After Delivery for New Moms

February 14, 2017
Fifteen to thirty percent of pregnant women are diagnosed with anemia (hemoglobin [Hb] less than 11.0 g/dL) and are at increased risk for preterm delivery, low birthweight, and other neurological complications. In order to determine if anemic pregnant women were more likely to receive postpartum RBC transfusions, the association between hemoglobin levels and transfusions was [Read More]

High-Throughput Exome Sequencing Clarifies Serology Typing and Helps Identify Rare and Novel Blood Group Alleles

February 7, 2017
Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), also known as high-throughput sequencing and massively parallel sequencing, is a revolutionary sequencing technique that amplifies numerous rounds of short DNA fragments (~150 bp) instead of long, targeted genomic molecules. Specific genes, exome regions, or whole genomes can be targeted by NGS. Schoeman et al. have used NGS targeting exomes to [Read More]