Protecting the Nation’s Blood Supply Line with Porous Plastic Components

Posted by Maria DeCapua in November 2019

While most don’t concern themselves with where blood goes after it’s drawn, the many steps in between the donation site to the laboratory can impact the safety and efficacy of blood. If compromised by inadequate equipment or materials, this can render donated blood as unsuitable for transfusion—or, worse—unsafe.

To combat these risks, healthcare facilities work to keep samples and blood donations safe from contamination and well-organized with proper labeling. However, additional testing is imperative at every step of the journey to ensure units of donated blood have been analyzed properly before they are delivered to patients via transfusion. This is an important job, considering that every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood and even one donation could potentially save up to three lives.[1] As such, it is essential that the materials used in the devices that test, collect and analyze samples do not compromise but instead protect the blood supply used by millions.

Using the right materials can make a critical difference in how these testing devices perform. Porous polymer components in particular can help to preserve laboratory samples that are collected at various testing sites and also help protect healthcare professionals who are handling samples in the laboratory as well as the hospital. From innovative liquid-handling filters to safety IV catheters, new infection prevention products aim to eliminate contaminants that can pose health threats to professionals, such as a clinical laboratory worker analyzing samples or a practitioner performing a life-saving blood transfusion.

To learn more about the critical role porous polymers play in protecting the nation’s blood supply, check out the recent articles featured in Medical Device & Diagnostics Industry (MD+DI) and Clinical Lab Products (CLP). Both explore how Porex components are helping to minimize risks in laboratory and hospital environments and the crucial role Porex components play in defending the blood supply line every step of the way.

[1] https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/how-to-donate/how-blood-donations-help/blood-needs-blood-supply.html