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Blood transfusion medicine in cats | VETgirl Veterinary CE Videos

 

In this VETgirl online veterinary CE video, we demonstrate how to administer a feline whole blood transfusion. This can be easily performed in your practice. The most important thing to remember is that cats must always be blood typed or cross-matched prior to transfusion, as there is no universal donor in cats. When picking a blood transfusion candidate, make sure to follow the ACVIM Transfusion Medicine Consensus Statement for screening. There are 4 main blood types: Type A, B, AB, and Mik. In this video, we used an Alvedia QuickTest feline blood test to blood type.

Rarely, cats can volume overload during transfusion, so VETgirl typically  stops IV crystalloids or colloids during transfusion administration. Blood transfusions should be ideally given within 4 hours. Patients should be monitored for transfusion reactions every 5-15 minutes for the first hour of transfusion, and then gradually as needed. When in doubt, don’t be nervous about transfusions as it can be life-saving! Just make sure you are administering it appropriately.

 

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