Whats in your wallet?

Luis G said:
i think the universal is O+
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O Rh- has no antibodies to react with the recipients own blood and cause "clumping" of the red blood cells which can lead to thrombosis and death in severe cases. This is why you have your temperature taken half-hourly during transfusions because one of the first signs of a reaction is a sudden rise in temperature. It's rare although it does happen occassionally - I've only had to deal with it once. :)
 
The terms "universal donor" and "universal recipient" were coined in 1912, when it was first demonstrated that it is relatively safe to give O- blood to patients of any blood group, and that blood from all groups can be given to AB+ patients.

In an emergency, anyone can receive O- blood. Donors who are O- are therefore referred to as "universal" donors. Patients who are O- can only receive O- blood.

A patient who is AB+ may receive blood from any type, and is known as a universal recipient. Blood received from an AB+ donor, however, can only be given to an AB+ patient.
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Luis G said:
but can you give O- to A+, AB+ and B+ ??
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Yes - other people with your blood type can receive your blood. First they will be cross-matched to check which type they are. Only O- can be given in a real emergency without cross-matching.
 
gf and Aunty: thanks for clearing that up :D

all my life i was living a lie....i thought O+ was the universal blood, it was the right magnitude, but not the right direction :D
 
It's actually more complicated than that because there are sub-types and if you have an "elective" (planned) transfusion then your blood will be tested against the blood you're going to receive, but generally speaking those are the rules. :)
 
That is true LL.

My mom is O Rh-, so they LOVE when she gives blood.

I am B+
 
I'm B-, as is my mum - she tells me stories about being the only reg'd blood donor of that type in a part of Dublin in the 70s, and they used to come and collect her from work in an ambulance to give blood for transfusions!

Wallet:
1 euro coin and 3 cents,
an Irish millennium pound coin,
a British 20p,
a guardian angel,
a ward against the evil eye,
a spare Pill,
credit card receipts,
60 euro,
my Greek ID card,
organ donor card (kidneys, heart and lungs - eyes are crap and liver is probably f*cked by now),
2 passport photos,
VHI card,
ATM card,
credit card,
and 10 business cards (9 of which are mine).
 
The first time I gave blood was in high school in 12th grade. Since then, I used to give blood every few months and was in the gallon club twice over.

Then one day, I found my Dad had to have an operation. He was in Florida and because I am the same blood type and wanted to be there for him, I flew down there, went to a blood donor center where I gave blood for his operation (no charge). Turned out, he needed 4 pints, and I was glad I could do that for him.

Because he was having corrective surgery on his intestine and knew that they were going to need to do another surgery, (this time in NY), I called the NY Blood Services to find out if my sister and I could do the same thing again. They said yes, but they would charge me! $104. per pint!!

I freaked on them, asked them what the $104. was for and they said to track and ship the blood to the hospital. So I said I'd go to the hospital directly and do it for free, they said you can do that but it won't neccessarily go to your father. I had gotten a manager on the phone at this point and I told her that it goes both ways and that I want to be paid $104. for every pint I gave them over the years. Basically I got nowhere.

Since NYBS covers the entire state, there's nowhere I can give blood and not have to deal with them. So I don't give blood anymore.
 
I only gave 2 times as my health sucks. Worst part is getting blood pressure high enough to donate...
I'm A+. That blood type grows in trees around here.
 
My problem wasn't by blood pressure but the iron in my blood, it was always too low. So they would do the stick test in the other arm, they said the numbers will read differently from each arm. Funny thing was, they were usually right.
 
I have never donated blood, because of my iron.

My iron isn't just a little below where it should be though. I have EXTREMELY low iron. :(
 
I'm healthy enough to donate blood... I should consider doing it. I'm just not fond of needles. Not at all.
 
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