Exchange Transfusion

Exchange Transfusion

The clinical phrase “Exchange Transfusion” is quite a common one; it refers to a medical therapy in which through apheresis (a clinical procedure) one patient’s platelets or blood cells are removed and replaced with transfused blood elements. This type of medical approach is widely employed in the therapy of numerous clinical disorders, including the following conditions: hemolytic disease in the case of newborns, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (a disorder commonly abbreviated as TTP), sickle cell disease, and so on.

This medical procedure is a potentially life-saving clinical technique; it is effective in counteracting the effects of a severe form of jaundice or to correct blood changes that occur due to other medical conditions (for example, sickle cell anemia). Other clinical disorders which can be treated through an Exchange Transfusion include the toxic effects of some medical products, severe sickle cell crisis, a dangerous form of newborn jaundice which has not adequately responded to other therapy options (such as phototherapy employing bili lights), abnormal, severe irregularities in the patient’s blood chemistry, neonatal polycythemia, etc.

As with most other medical procedures, this type of transfusion is associated with a number of risks; possible complications of this clinical process include the following: shock (this can occur due to the inappropriate replacement of blood), infection (this can be avoided though the careful screening of the donor’s blood), lung and / or heart conditions, changes in the blood’s normal chemistry (low levels of glucose, low levels of calcium or of potassium, high levels of potassium, etc), blood clots, and so on. You will have to discuss with your PD and weight the benefits that you would be yielded by this medical procedure against the risks that it implies. Together with your main medical prescriber you will determine whether Exchange Transfusion is indeed the best therapeutic option in your medical case.

Exchange Transfusion Description

To perform an Exchange Transfusion means to remove and replace the patient’s blood (with blood that is taken from a donor). In most cases, this clinical procedure involves the placing of several catheters (long, thin tubes) into one of the patient’s blood vessels. The whole process is formed of several cycles; each of these cycles is known to generally last for a couple of minutes.

During a cycle of the Exchange Transfusion, the individual’s blood is slowly taken out (between 5 to 20 mL are withdrawn at a time; this amount varies from one patient to another, as it depends on the individual’s age, size and also on the severity of his or her medical condition). The same amount of pre-warmed, fresh blood (or, in some cases, plasma) is released in the patient’s body. This cycle is to be repeated over and over again, until the needed amount of blood is replaced. In some cases, the catheters that have been placed for the Exchange Transfusion are not removed after the process is finished as they may be re-used in case the procedure has to be performed again.

As we have already stated, in some cases the patient receives blood from a donor, while in others the transfusion involves the replacement of blood with plasma, normal saline solution or with albumin. For individuals who are suffering from sickle cell anemia, the transfusion involves the removal and the replacement of the patient’s blood with fresh, donor blood. However, children who have been diagnosed with neonatal polycythemia and who undergo Exchange Transfusion receive plasma, normal saline solution or albumin. In this case, the procedure is able to decrease the patient’s total number of red blood cells, making it much easier for the blood to flow through the organism.

An infant who has undergone this type of transfusion may have to be kept under close monitoring for several days (this means that he or she will have to remain hospitalized); the length of the patient’s stay varies depending on the medical disorder for which the individual has undergone transfusion.

Exchange Transfusion Related Medication

The process of Exchange Transfusion does not require the administration of any special clinical products. Only in certain cases some patients were administered a small dose of a local anesthetic prior to the insertion of the catheter in one of their blood vessels. The administration of the local anesthetic should be able to prevent the patient from experiencing pain-related symptoms which can occur during the process of insertion of the catheter. The decision concerning the particular local anesthetic which is to be administered to a certain individual should be made by the patient’s health care provider, as he or she is the only one who is familiar enough with the individual’s personal and family medical history (such data is required in order to avoid the development of unwanted, potentially dangerous complications such as the occurrence of an allergic reaction to one or more of the drug’s ingredients). Apart from this, the process of transfusion is not a medicine-based therapeutic technique.

However, all patients should know that their undergoing this type of medical therapeutic procedure should not interfere with their current therapy courses, unless their main medical providers have instructed them otherwise. Although, in normal cases, a patient who undergoes Exchange Transfusion does not need to make any changes to his or her treatment schedule, as a measure of precaution, a patient can choose to discuss this aspect of his or her therapy with their PD. However, in some cases, patients who were undergoing Exchange Transfusion have been administered certain medical products during the clinical process. Such products are known to generally belong to the class of electrolytes and minerals and are generally administered through the catheter.

We have the responsibility to inform all patients that this medical article is not able to substitute for the professional expertise of a qualified health care professional, and has been designed to be a simple supplement to the services of the patient’s PD. We strongly recommend all patients to seek the professional opinion of a highly trained medical provider before starting any type of therapy course.