- Blood Products

Frozen-Thawed Red Blood Cells:

Vol = 200cc.  Requires a blood filter.  Infuse over 1-3 hours.  Frozen solid up to 3 years in a glycerol solution, and then thawed for use.   It has few WBCs or Platelets, and no Plasma.  The process is used to store a patient’s own blood for later use and does not have the antigenic complications of using the regular donor blood.  Also used to store very rare blood types.  How you can freeze blood and not kill it is a fascinating mystery to me… Must learn how that is possible some day!