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Saint Barnabas: A Leader in Autotransfusion for Surgery In 1990, Saint Barnabas Medical Center became one of the first hospitals in New Jersey to offer autotransfusion for patients undergoing non-cardiac procedures. Jay Thompson of Blood Recovery Services, Inc., instituted the autotransfusion program at the Medical Center. As of 1999, The HEART HOSPITAL of New Jersey at Saint Barnabas Medical Center began using autotransfusion in its new cardiac program. Autotransfusion, which means "selftransfusion," is a method by which blood that is lost during and sometimes after surgery can be collected, filtered, concentrated, washed and returned to the patient. Returning the patient's own blood eliminates the potential for a negative reaction or contraction of viruses or diseases, risks sometimes associated with traditional blood transfusions. This alternative greatly limits and most often eliminates the need for transfusions from a blood bank. As a patient is losing blood during surgery, the surgeon is able to suction the blood into a sterile, filtered container. The autotransfusionist then uses a highly specialized machine to concentrate and wash the blood before returning it to the patient. The recycling process itself can take as little as six minutes. Autotransfusion is most often used in major orthopedic surgeries such as total hip or total knee replacements, or in major spinal, vascular, cardiac and trauma surgeries. It is also generally accepted by Jehovah's Witnesses whose religion prohibits all other forms of blood transfusions. If you are a patient facing one of these surgeries, contact your physician for more information about autotransfusion. [ top ] |
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