Learn More About Reusable Blood Warmer

By Margaret Snyder


Generally, when you donate blood and is not transfused to a patient at that time, it has to be stored in a refrigerator so as to enhance its life. Obvious, the temperature in a refrigerator is far much below the normal body blood temperature. It happens that this ice-cold fluid is transfused into the body system, conditions like hyperthermia, arrhythmias, and shock are likely to occur. That is why reusable blood warmer are used so as to provide the fluid with the necessary and appropriate temperature before being incorporated into the body.

These devices are of different kinds depending on their technique of warming and the technology used. The first type uses the method of dry heat. Other types are the countercurrent and using the water bath. You need to do this during the process of in-line warming or before transfusion. However, the device does not offer the methods of retaining heat despite being made with a technology which prevents loss of heat.

Once you raise the temperature to the one required which is thirty-seven degree Celsius, you transfuse the fluid into your body since when you don't do it, it will naturally cool down to where the temperature was initially. Additionally, it can provide heat without interfering with the living cells like WBC and RBC.

Mostly, you need to use these devices during the process of transferring blood to a patient that requires not less than fifty percent of blood volume of their body. Also, you can use the devices when the amount you want to administer needs urgency or when you need to do it rapidly. The reason is that when you transfuse a higher amount of the cold fluid into the body, then the cases mentioned are likely to emerge because of the temperature will lower to the range which gets recommended. If the patient has cold agglutinins, then you can use these devices.

However, it is important to have certain specific considerations before administering the procedure to patients who are elderly, pediatric, neonates, as well as those with chronic infections and cardiac dysfunction. However, the device should be operating before the entire exercise begins. One of the reasons being that it cannot be switched on, at the same time, it is has provided the required temperature.

These devices are advantageous since the patients can acquire the body temperature which is necessary and the side effects such as the cold or low temperature get eradicated. Moreover, you do not have to dispose of the device together with the storage and bags. You can use again and again. You only need to fix the device in a body, or a bag in case of countercurrent and then switch it on and start operating.

However, it has various disadvantages such as temperature maintain technology or failure. You can only prevent the heat loss by current warming, but you cannot be able to make the patient warm. Therefore, you need to use other methods such as blankets, warming, as well as pads as another alternative or remedies to conditions such as hypothermia.

They are not effective in providing warmth as other ways like using hot water baths, blankets, and pads do better than them in reducing hypothermia. However, their use cannot be compared with cold transfusions.




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