2 April 2025 (Wednesday) - NEQAS 2502 BF

I got hold of the results of 2502 BF today.

 

I said:

 

2502BF1

 

Lymphocytosis   (consensus 3^rd)

Bi-lobed lymphocytes (consensus 7^th)

Smear cells (consensus 1^st)

Neutropenia (consensus 5^th)

Thrombocytopenia (consensus 4th)

 

I thought this was a lymphoproliferative condition. It was CLL

 

2502BF2

 

Neutropenia (consensus 3^rd)

Reactive/atypical lymphocytes (consensus 2^nd)

Smear cells (consensus 9^th)

 

I thought this was a lymphoproliferative condition. Apparently it was glandular fever… several of us sat down with one of the consultants and we were unanimous that it wasn’t.

Just goes to show you can’t rely on morphology alone.

2 April 2025 (Wednesday) - NEQAS 2501DF

I got hold of the results of 2501DF1 today

 

Neuts           1.7 (median 0.8) 

Lymphs       14.1 (median 16.1)

Monos          1.7  (median  1.0)

 

My neuts and lymphs were a tad high, but when you consider the 2sd range for neuts was 0 – 2.6 and for monos was 0 – 5, that’s not too bad really. I suppose this illustrates the variability in manual diff counting

 

31 March 2025 (Monday) - Transfusion Evidence Alert

The nice people at Transfusion Evidence Alert sent their update today. As usual there was a lot to take in, but if I take my time reading it, some of it might soak in…

ARTICLE OF THE MONTH

Liberal vs. restrictive transfusion strategies for acute brain injury: a systematic review and frequentist-Bayesian meta-analysis.
Blot, P.L., et al. (2025). Intensive Care Medicine.
PICO SUMMARY

 

 

TOP ARTICLES

Effect of early administration of fibrinogen replacement therapy in traumatic haemorrhage: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials with narrative synthesis of observational studies.
Burt, T., et al. (2025). Critical Care.

Which is the best storage temperature to preserve the haemostatic quality of non-leukoreduced whole blood units collected under a military emergency protocol - cold or room temperature?
Degueldre, J., et al. (2025). Transfusion Clinique et Biologique. [Record in progress].

Single dose intravenous iron versus oral iron for treatment of maternal iron deficiency anemia: a randomized clinical trial.
Derman, R.J., et al. (2025). American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. [Record in progress].

Therapeutic plasma exchange accelerates immune cell recovery in severe COVID-19.
Guironnet-Paquet, A., et al. (2024). Frontiers in Immunology.

Direct antiglobulin test for the prediction of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia needing an intervention: a systematic review and diagnostic test accuracy meta-analysis.
Kumar Krishnegowda, V., et al. (2024). Frontiers in Pediatrics.

Enarodustat for the treatment of anemia in Chinese patients with non-dialysis chronic kidney disease: a phase 3 trial.
Liang, X.L., et al. (2025). Kidney Diseases.

Optimal dose and duration of iron supplementation for treating iron deficiency anaemia in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Rehman, T., et al. (2025). PLoS One.

Efficacy and safety of recombinant human thrombopoietin (rhTPO) on coagulation function and inflammatory factors in the treatment of patients with sepsis-related thrombocytopeni.
Wang, H., Chen, D., and He, M. (2025). Clinical and Applied Thrombosis/Hemostasis.

Transfusion of blood and blood products for the management of postpartum haemorrhage.
Williams, C.R., et al. (2025). The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.

 

30 March 2025 (Sunday) - Slide Saturday Challenge

Spherocytes – a result of either a hereditary issue with the red cell membrane, or of membrane loss due to a haemolytic process.

I got it right… but not by guessing correctly.

 

I really should get off that high horse about “guessing”. I’m sure that whoever is writing these little exercises doesn’t mean that people should take pot luck in choosing an answer. They are giving me a useful bit of CPD for free… and all I can do is find fault with their choice of words. 

27 March 2025 (Thursday) - Another ASH Update

The nice people at the American Society of Hematology sent their update today. It is very clinical, and arguably not that relevant to what I do on a daily basis… but it is invaluable background reading.

 

26 March 2025 (Wednesday) - ASH Update

The latest update came in from ASH today. Much of it was clinical and went over my head, but…Arsenic to treat leukemia?  It would seem it works with nearly one hundred per cent success with relapsed acute promyelocytic leukemia.

23 March 2025 (Sunday) - BTLP-TACT Exercise

“er indoors ^TM” is asleep on the sofa. I’m a bit bored… time for a BTLP-TACT exercise. I was presented with one case – a sixty-seven year-old chap requiring group & save.

 

He grouped as O Rh(D) Positive with antibody screen positive in cells 1 and 3. I performed antibody panels.

The IAT panel was positive in cells 1, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 10. This corresponded with anti-s but didn’t exclude anti-Cw or anti-Kp(a). But the enzyme panel was negative in all cells which did exclude anti-Cw and anti-Kp(a)

 

I got the green light.