Canada's Blood

CANADA'S BLOOD. Every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood. Much of the blood that is transfused every year is done under emergency or trauma situations. In Canada, hundreds of thousands of people each year receive blood components or blood products following accidents, during surgery or for cancer treatments, burn therapy, hemophilia and other blood-related diseases. There are approximately 450 ml of blood in a unit In 2004/2005 Canadian Blood Services collected 382 500 000 milliliters of blood. approximately 850,000 units of whole blood. Blood is comprised of several components. Each Red Blood Cells: Carry oxygen to tissues and are responsible for removal of carbon dioxide through the lungs. donation of whole blood is White Blood Cells: protect the body from infection, however, they often carry viruses and bacteria. This is why these cells are removed in a process called leukoreduction to protect recipients from side-effects. separated into four main components: Platelets: provide the basis for clotting that helps control bleeding. Plasma: is a liquid containing many of the body's proteins that help fight infection and help clotting. It distributes nutrients to tissues and transports waste products to the lungs, liver and kidneys, which expel them. Plasmapheresis yields twice as much plasma as a whole blood donation. There are four major blood groups A, O, B, and AB divided into Rh Positive and Rh Negative types. The most common blood type in Canada is O Rh Positive and the rarest blood A+ A- O+ O- B+ B- AB+ AB- 36% 06% 39% 07% 7.6% 1.4% 2.5% 0.5% type is AB Rh Negative. Blood and blood products are a critical part of every- day medical care, such as major surgeries and other medical procedures: Red blood cells can be Platelets can be used to used to help accident treat leukemia and patients with cancer. victims, surgical patients and people with anaemia. Plasma is effective in treating patients suffering from burns or shock. Cryoprecipitate, an additional component of blood, has been used to Source: Canadian Blood Services, treat hemophilia and now http://www.bloodservices.ca/ other blood disorders.