Effective blood transfusion therapy.

Although blood and its components are essential to modern therapy, they should be viewed as potentially dangerous liquid transplants. Transfusion is an admission of diagnostic or therapeutic defeat, to be used only if no other reasonable means of replacing low blood components is available. Only those components which are missing should be replaced. Red cells, platelets, coagulation factors and (in some centres) leucocytes are available in concentrated form. Although transfusion reactions are rare, they may be serious. Consultation with the hospital or Red Cross blood bank director should be undertaken in transfusion problems.