Blood Transfusion Between the Wars

Abstract

This article examines the introduction of blood transfusion into general practice from the end of the First World War to the Second World War. Developments during most of this period were not the result of new discoveries but rather the spread of ideas and the establishment of donor organizations to secure an adequate blood supply. The identification, testing, and organization of potential donors were done in a wide variety of settings that reflected differences in political and cultural experiences. At the end of the 1930s, with war approaching, the resolution of problems with storage of blood and the discovery of new techniques for separating and storing plasma dramatically changed transfusion practice. Thus, the innovations of the Second World War were very much based on the development of broad donor organizations plus the new technical discoveries that had occurred during the interwar period.

The donors perceived positive and negative effects of blood donation

“…Maintaining a strong and healthy donor population has been a mainstay of blood services since World War I, where blood transfusions saved many soldiers' lives . In 1937, the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT) was founded to meet the need for sharing and developing ideas and research to ensure safe blood products and maintaining a steady and constant donor population.…”

War, Politics, and Voice: The Vocal Fold Paralysis of George Orwell

“…Notable among these are significant advances in blood transfusion, including donor screening for disease (syphilis, malaria, and tuberculosis), minimizing hemolysis in transport, and improving the logistics of supplying large quantities to frontline hospitals. These are most commonly associated with the Catalan physician Dr. Frederico Duran Jorda and the flamboyant Canadian communist Dr. Norman Bethune 12–15 . Improvements in wound care, featuring rapid evacuation and prompt exploration and debridement followed by immobilization in plaster, are attributed to Dr. Josep Trueta.…”

What Caused the Epidemic ofPneumocystisPneumonia in European Premature Infants in the Mid-20th Century?

“…Blood transfusions were introduced into industrialized countries after World War I as a result of technical advances in blood typing, anticoagulants, blood storage, and donor recruitment. 111,112 Blood transfusions were not commonly given to premature infants in the first few years after World War I. 113 However, by the 1930s their use had increased in certain European countries, and by the 1950s, blood transfusions were commonly used in premature nurseries in many countries in continental Europe.…”