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Making the best use of blood
The INTERVAL trial is currently evaluating the effect of reducing the time that must elapse between blood donations by volunteer donors. I've been randomised to donate a unit every 10 weeks so I was pleased to read about the efforts Kelly et al have undertaken in Edinburgh to improve blood component ordering, usage and traceability. There was a 64% reduction in blood component ordering, a 39% reduction in blood component transfusion and a 96% reduction in unaccounted units between 2007 and 2011. That's a lot of armfuls. With increasing pressure on donors and donor services, and increasing awareness of the risks of unnecessary transfusion, there are valuable lessons to be learnt from this study.
When is a head injury not a head injury?
Decision rules can be used to select patients with head injury for CT scanning, but deciding when to apply the rule can be tricky. If a decision rule is developed …