Every year, more than 4 million American kids and adults receive blood transfusions. In fact, blood transfusions help save nearly thousands of lives each day!

So when and why do kids need blood transfusions? What happens when a kid gets a transfusion? And just what is a blood transfusion, anyway? Keep reading to learn the answers to all these questions and to discover the truth about blood transfusions.

What Is a Transfusion?
A blood transfusion (say: trans-few-zyun) is what happens when blood that has been donated by a volunteer is transferred into another person's bloodstream. Transfusions are often needed to save the lives of kids who have serious, life-threatening accidents. Sometimes kids who have surgery or other medical treatments, or kids with certain types of diseases, will also need transfusions. Blood is transfused as whole blood sometimes, but usually only parts of blood, or blood components (say: kom-poe-nents) - such as red blood cells, plasma, and platelets - are transfused.

Blood Basics
Your heart pumps blood through blood vessels that reach every organ and tissue in the body. Your blood itself is living tissue with different components, each of which does important work.

Blood is made up of a yellowish, watery liquid called plasma (say: plaz-muh) and three types of cells that float freely in the plasma: red cells, white cells, and platelets.

• Red blood cells, which give your blood its red color, carry oxygen from the lungs to your body's tissues and take carbon dioxide back to your lungs to be exhaled.
• White blood cells help your body fight infections.
• Platelets (say: plate-lets) help your blood clot after an injury.

Almost all blood donations in America are from volunteers who give blood at places such as high schools, colleges, churches, community blood centers, and hospital blood banks. All donors must first pass a physical and health history examination before making a donation. They must also be 17 or older and weigh at least 110 pounds (49.9 kilograms). Most blood collected for transfusions is separated into red cell, white cell, platelet, and plasma components. Collected blood is measured in units. One unit equals about one pint.

Every blood unit is tested for its type. The two major blood classifications are ABO (types A, B, O, or AB blood) and Rh (positive or negative). Patients who need transfusions will receive blood that matches their type. An exception is type O Rh-negative blood, which is called the universal donor. That means that in an emergency, anyone can safely receive O-negative blood, regardless of his or her blood type.

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