When Every Second Counts:

The need for blood and plasma continues to be of great importance: Trauma victims, organ transplants, invasive surgeries or patients receiving treatment for leukemia or other diseases rely on transfusions for their survival. Before a blood donation can save a life, however, rigorous compliance standards have to be met. This includes screening each donation for diseases and investigating patient-donor compatibility to avoid severe transfusion reactions such as red blood cell destruction, renal failure or shock. Crucial factors for an optimal patient-donor match are blood type and rhesus factor. 

Given the possibly fatal effects, transfusion medicine leaves no room for error. Tecan has developed the ORTHO VISION™ Analyzer for Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, the global leader for transfusion medicine, to take full automation transfusion medicine testing to the next level.

Most promising in securing the safety of the world’s blood supply is automation. A system like the ORTHO VISION™ Analyzer enables more efficient testing while ensuring the highest degree of flexibility. In a case of emergency, lab personnel will now be able to prioritize tests as they are requested and respond to unpredictable lab demand. This enables unprecedented flexibility and efficiency in saving lives through blood transfusions. 

The WHO reports that blood donations have increased by 25% from 80 million in 2004 to 108 million. While in high-income countries the most frequently transfused patient group is over 65 years of age, up to 65% of blood transfusions are given to children under 5 years of age in low-income countries. The availability and safety of blood donations also differs among high-income and low-income countries. Automation offers tremendous potential as 80% of labs in emerging markets are still operating manually.