10 December 2023 (Sunday) - BTLP-TACT

I’ve not done a BTLP-TACT exercise for ages… I was presented with two cases:

 

13485 – a ninety-two year-old chap in out patients requiring two units of blood within the hour

He grouped as A Rh(D) Positive with ntibody screen positive in cell 2.

I performed panels.

The enzyme and IAT panels were positive in cells 2 and 6 which was consistent with anti-K

I selected two units of A Rh(D) Positive which were K Negative

 

99315 – a fifty-eight year-old woman in A&E requiring group and save.

She grouped as A Rh(D) Negative with antibody screen positive in cell 3.

I performed panels.

The enzyme and IAT panels were positive in cell 8 which was consistent with anti-Kp(a)

 

I got the thumbs down. It claimed that the D group of the first one was uninterpretable.

Well, it wasn’t. I’m claiming shenanigans on this one

7 December 2023 (Thursday) - Medical Laboratory Observer

I’ve signed up to the mailing list of the Medical Laboratory Observer. You can do so by clicking here.

The first update I got mentioned screening tests for multiple sclerosis and race-related reference ranges for PSA…

This might be a useful resource. Time will tell; it always does.

6 December 2023 (Wednesday) - NEQAS 2304 PA

 

The results of NEQAS parasitology 2304PA became available today…

 

2304 PA1

 

I saw T. cruzei… so did everyone else.

 

2304 PA2

 

I’m going to argue this one. I saw the P. falciparum. However I also saw what I thought were completely different parasites. I thought these were P. vivax, as did over a hundred other participants. You’d think that the scheme organisers would address this… what were we all seeing?

6 December 2023 (Wednesday) - NEQAS 2307 BF

The results of NEQAS morphology 2307BF became available today…
 

2307 BF1

 

Hypochromic (consensus 8^th) 

Lymphocytosis (some spiky?)  (consensus 1^st)

smear cells (consensus 7^th)

low plts (consensus 2^nd)

 

? CLL (it was)

 

 

2307 BF2

 

burr cells (consensus 6^th)

nrbc (consensus 1^st)

lymphocytosis / blasts (consensus 2^nd)

smear cells (consensus 4^th)

low plts (consensus 3^rd)

 

? lymphoma (it was)

 
I got that right

5 December 2023 (Tuesday) - Fritsma Factor Newsletter

The Fritsma Factor newsletter arrived in my in-box today… Perhaps I’m being unfair to compare it tl last week’s update from Stago, but this one wasn’t one of the better ones.

That’s rather ungrateful of me, isn’t it?

4 December 2023 (Monday) - Transfusion Evidence Alert Update

The nice people at the Transfusion Evidence Library sent quite a few articles today. The COVID plasma debate rages on – is it any good or not? And one unit transfusions are supposedly as good as two units…

Top Article

Efficacy and safety of early administration of 4-factor prothrombin complex concentrate in patients with trauma at risk of massive transfusion: the PROCOAG randomized clinical trial. Bouzat,
P., et al. (2023). JAMA.
PICO SUMMARY

 

Selected Articles

Effect of donor sex on recipient mortality in transfusion.
Chasse, M., et al. (2023). The New England Journal of Medicine.

Effect of single-unit transfusion in patients treated for haematological disease including acute leukemia: a multicenter randomized controlled clinical trial.
Chantepie, S.P., et al. (2023). Leukemia Research.

Pathogen inactivation methods to prevent transfusion-transmissible arboviruses.
Giménez-Richarte, Á., et al. (2023). Tropical Medicine & International Health

Prehospital tranexamic acid for severe trauma.
Gruen, R. L., et al. (2023). The New England Journal of Medicine.

Convalescent plasma for people with COVID-19: a living systematic review.
Iannizzi, C., et al. (2023). The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.

Comparison of quantitative and calculated postpartum blood loss after vaginal delivery.
Madar, H., et al. (2023). American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Two-year outcomes following a randomised platelet transfusion trial in preterm infants.
Moore C.M., et al. (2023). Archives of Disease in Childhood. Fetal and Neonatal Edition.

Men who have sex with men and risk for transfusion-transmissible infections in blood donors in Western countries: a systematic review update.
Schroyens, N., et al. (2023). Vox Sanguinis.

Platelet transfusion before CVC placement in patients with thrombocytopenia.
Van Baarle, F.L.F., et al. (2023). The New England Journal of Medicine.

 

30 November 2023 (Thursday) - Stago Newsletter

The nice people at Stago sent their update today. You can read it by clicking here.

Quite a useful thing to have – whilst the corporate stuff about their latest analysers was only of passing interest to me (realistically I am never going to use them) the stuff about QC and INR was rather good.