“If blood is donated during the window period, it may test completely safe even though it is contaminated,”said transplant surgeon Ajith Huilgol. The window period is the period between the time when a person may have contracted the infection, and when the test can reliably detect that infection. In the instance of HIV, the window period is minimum 12 weeks or three months.

“We have found a co-relation between blood transfusion and higher risk of infection in orthopaedic procedures. We have newer systems to prevent blood transfusion. But our real worry is infection” said Dr Sanjay Pai, Chief of Orthopaedics, Wockhardt Hospitals.

Quite a few corporate hospitals in the City either ask their patients to replace blood or use their donors to donate blood. They turn to blood banks only when they run out of options, more in the cases of negative and rare blood groups, and in trauma cases.

Blood bank say

Dr Lata, founder-trustee of TTK-Rotary Blood Bank says, “We collect around 2,500 units of blood every month and can collect twice as much. But there should be a demand for it. Many corporate hospitals don’t take blood from blood banks even though we maintain the highest and most stringent quality standards. Also, the patients’ family complain that they have been asked by the hospital to replace blood. Often, they are not in a situation to arrange for donors.” 

However according to Dr Sharad Damodar, clinical haemotologist, Narayana Health City, blood transfusion is avoided for safety reasons. “Moreover, we don’t need to outsource because we have our regional blood bank.”
Narayana Hrudayalaya Chairman Dr Devi Prasad Shetty said that blood requirement in heart surgeries has come down by 50 per cent. “Blood is dangerous. If its not stored properly it can lead to sepsis in the patient,” he said.

Safer options

Dr Sharan Patil, chairman and chief orthopaedic surgeon, Sparsh Hospital, said that blood requirement has been minimised to a large extent using new technology and surgical equipment. “We also resort to autologous blood transfusion in many cases,” he said.

Even in complicated oncology procedures, where cancerous organs are removed, surgeons use  minimum amount of blood. “In major oncology procedures like liver, pancreas and rectum, where we earlier used three to four units of blood, we try and make do with one unit now. Complications in blood transfusion can range from rashes to blood getting destroyed in the patient, if proper cross matching is not done,” said Dr Krishnamurthy, oncology surgeon, Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology.