6 May 2025 (Tuesday) - BTLP-TACT Exercise

Time for another BTLP-TACT exercise… I was (eventually) presented with one case – a sixty-three year-old chap needing six units of blood right away for a gunshot wound.

He grouped as B Rh(D) Positive with a negative antibody screen.

I selected six units of O Rh(D) Positive blood.

I got the thumbs-up.

 

6 May 2025 (Tuesday) - Feeling Smug

I got the results of NEQAS 2502 DM today. My notes said:
 

• Falciparum - ring forms & gametocytes
• Ovale schizonts (as fimbrillation) on red cells
• ??? exflagellation
• Unusual Wbc

 
The expert opinion said:
 
“This case shows a dual parasite infection with P. falciparum and P. ovale. Cases such as this are infrequent but certainly seen. The key is to recognise when things don’t quite match those of a single species. Present on this film are early trophozoites of P. ovale, late trophozoites of P. falciparum, and gametocytes of each species. There is a phagocyte containing malaria pigment.”
 
Well, I spotted the two species correctly, and the “unusual Wbc” I saw would be the one with the malarial pigment. Bearing how infrequently we see positive malarial smears, let alone ones with dual infestations, as Kryten 2X4B 523P would say “engage smug mode”…

5 May 2025 (Monday) - Pelger-Huet Anomaly

I saw what looked like a case of Pelger Huet anomaly last Friday. I took a rather poor photo, and then… I discovered that many years ago I started a page on my atlas on the matter but never actually published it.

So I wrote it up and published it. You can see it by clicking here and clicking on the relevant bit.

If you click there and look at the relevant bit you will see that one photo is far better than the other. Back in the day I had a camera attachment that I stuck into the microscope. I need to get another of those.

1 May 2025 (Thursday) - BTLP-TACT Exercise

Time for another BTLP-TACT exercise… I was (eventually) presented with one case – a fifty-three year-old woman needing group and save for a hernia repair.

She grouped as A Rh(D) Positive with a negative antibody screen.

I got the green light…

 

1 May 2025 (Thursday) - HCPC Update

The HCPC sent their update today. You can read it by clicking here. Like the UKAS update it’s rather dry and at first sight maybe not that relevant to my daily round. But it pays to keep abreast of things…

For example they are changing how they are taking the direct debit payments…

30 April 2025 (Wednesday) - UKAS Update

UKAS sent their update today. You can read it by clicking here. Back in the day I would have been very negative and opinionated about it. These days I’ve conceded that love it or loathe it, this is how it is, and I might as well embrace it.

If only they would actually say what their standards were and how we might practically adhere to them than I would find it much easier to get on-board with them… but there it is.

30 April 2025 (Wednesday) - Iron Deficient H.E.

An interesting case… an iron-deficient case of hereditary elliptocytosis. There’s more about it in my atlas…