At the recent Procuring for Healthcare 2006 conference (held recently at The De Vere Belfry), Dr David Coates, consultant anaesthetist at The Bristol Royal Infirmary, challenged the audience of healthcare professionals to ensure the use of postoperative autologous blood collection devices within their hospitals.
More recently an audit has been carried out which demonstrates that the use of a post-operative autologous blood collection device can be successfully extended to hip replacements. The CellTrans device from SUMMIT MEDICAL has been chosen as it allows for collection and reinfusion of blood lost up to 12 hours after the end of surgery. With hip replacements blood loss may not occur until several hours after the procedure as the effect of local anaesthesia wanes and the patient starts to move more freely in bed.
The CellTrans device has two collection bags, both of which are pre-attached in theatre, allowing for reinfusion of the first bag of blood to commence within six hours of initiation of collection, and then a further six hours for the second collection bag.
