Yesterday, June 14, was World Blood Donor Day.
In the United States, nearly 16 million blood components are transfused each year. Every 2 seconds, someone in this country needs blood or platelets. Let’s take a look at a few of the early medical discoveries in blood storage and transfusion that paved the way to saving millions of lives today:
- 1628: British physician William Harvey discovers the circulation of blood.
- 1818: British obstetrician James Blundell performs the first recorded human-to-human blood transfusion.
- 1901: Austrian physician Karl Landsteiner discovers the first three human blood types. The fourth type (AB) was identified in 1902.
- 1940-1941: Driving by wartime needs, the U.S. government establishes a program to send blood plasma to Great Britain. The Red Cross organizes a civilian blood donor service.
- 1950: American physicians (from Harvard and MIT) Carl Walter and William Murphy, Jr. develop the plastic blood bag—still used today for the collection and transportation of blood.
And there are so many innovations on the horizon. For example, researchers at University of Maryland School of Medicine are working to develop an artificial blood product that might have lifesaving implications for trauma patients.
Has your institution contributed to the many lifesaving advances in blood storage and transfusion? Is your institution working on an innovative research or treatments in this area? Please share!
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Nicole Buckley
Communications Strategist
Association of American Medical Colleges
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