Includes bibliographical references and index.

The blood donor: demographics, donor selection and tests on donor blood / Liz Caffrey, Pat Hewitt and John Barbara -- Supply and demand for blood and blood components, and stock management / Judith Chapman, Peter Garwood, Sue Knowles -- Compatibility testing before transfusion and blood ordering policies / Marcela Contreras and Alek Mijovic -- Transfusion of red cells / Mike Murphy and Jonathan Wallis -- Platelet and granulocyte transfusions / Dupe Elebute, Simon Stanworth and Cristina Navarrete -- Haemolytic disease of the newborn and its prevention / Sailesh Kumar, Fiona Regan and Marcela Contreras -- Fetal and neonatal transfusion / Helen New and Sailesh Kumar -- Plasma, plasma products and indications for their use (to include plasma exchange) / Hannah Cohen, Sam Machin, and Trevor Baglin -- Human albumin solutions and the controversy of crystalloids versus colloids / Neil Soni -- The treatment of massive haemorrhage: in surgery and in trauma / Tim Walsh and Alastair Nimmo -- Immunological complications of transfusion / Marcela Contreras and Cristina Navarrete --

Infectious complications of blood transfusion: bacteria and parasites / John Barbara and Marcela Contreras -- Infectious complications of blood transfusion: viruses / John Barbara and Marcela Contreras -- vCJD and its impact on the UK blood supply / Pat Hewitt, James Ironside and Marcela Contreras -- Risks of transfusion in the context of haemovigilance. SHOT: the UK haemovigilance system / Dorothy Stainsby and Hannah Cohen -- Alternatives to allogeneic blood transfusion including autologous transfusion / Dafydd Thomas, Beverley Hunt and Marcela Contreras -- Blood substitutes / Kenneth C. Lowe -- Appropriate use of blood and better blood transfusion / Mike Murphy -- Cellular and immunotherapies / Alek Mijovic, Derwood Pamphilon and Suzanne Watt -- Blood transfusion in a regulatory environment and the EU directive / Shubha Allard, Clare Taylor and Angela Robinson.