According to some sources, the first blood transfusion took place in 1492, when Pope Innocent VIII was given the blood of three ten-year-old boys. The evidence for this story is unreliable and may have been motivated by anti-Semitism.
The first reported successful blood transfusions were performed by the Incas as early as the 1500s. Spanish conquistadors witnessed blood transfusions when they arrived in the sixteenth century.
Frenchman Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys, the physician to King Louis XIV, administered on June 15, 1667 the first ever documented blood transfusion from animal to human. He injected into the veins of a dying 15-year old boy eight ounces of lamb’s blood and temporarily succeeded in restoring him. However the boy subsequently died and Denis was accused of murder.
After Jean Baptiste Denis’ pioneering blood transfusion, many attempts were made throughout Europe to improve on his procedure. However so many patients died from the resulting incompatibility reactions that by the turn of the 18th century, the process was banned in England and France.
William Halsted administered the first blood transfusion in the United States in 1881, after discovering that blood, once charged with air, can be reintroduced into a patient's body.
Alexander Bogdanov was a Russian physician who experimented with blood transfusion to gain eternal youth. He died on April 7, 1928 after injecting himself with blood from a student infected with malaria and tuberculosis, who also may have been the wrong blood type.
Frenchman Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys, the physician to King Louis XIV, administered on June 15, 1667 the first ever documented blood transfusion from animal to human. He injected into the veins of a dying 15-year old boy eight ounces of lamb’s blood and temporarily succeeded in restoring him. However the boy subsequently died and Denis was accused of murder.
After Jean Baptiste Denis’ pioneering blood transfusion, many attempts were made throughout Europe to improve on his procedure. However so many patients died from the resulting incompatibility reactions that by the turn of the 18th century, the process was banned in England and France.
William Halsted administered the first blood transfusion in the United States in 1881, after discovering that blood, once charged with air, can be reintroduced into a patient's body.
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| British poster encouraging people to donate blood for the war effort. |
Alexander Bogdanov was a Russian physician who experimented with blood transfusion to gain eternal youth. He died on April 7, 1928 after injecting himself with blood from a student infected with malaria and tuberculosis, who also may have been the wrong blood type.
American surgeon and medical researcher Charles Richard Drew (June 3, 1904 – April 1, 1950) was a pioneer in preserving blood. His work led to large-scale blood bank use, U.S. blood donations to Britons in World War II, and the use of bloodmobiles. As the most prominent African American in the field, Drew protested against the practice of racial segregation in the donation of blood, and resigned his position with the American Red Cross, which maintained the policy until 1950.
Bill Haast, known as the Snake Man, injected himself with venom every day for 60 years. He has been credited for saving numerous lives by donating his blood which is rich in antibodies.
In 2019, researchers from the University of British Columbia figured out how to convert blood type A into the universal Type O, which all patients can receive in a transfusion, regardless of their own blood type. This could broaden the supply of blood and ease shortages.
1 in 10,000 units of blood that are transfused in the US are the wrong kind of blood for the patient.
It was tradition in Ireland that if you donated a pint of blood, you'd receive a pint of Guinness to replace the lost iron.
Chile has the highest percentage of people belonging to one singular blood group. 85% of the population are O +ve.
Canadian researchers discovered how to convert blood types A, B and AB to universal donor O-negative. They found that human gut bacteria makes a class of enzymes which react with the non-O type red blood cells, essentially transforming them into O-negative.
Greyhounds are universal blood donors and can donate blood to almost any other breed of dog.
Cats have only three blood types: A, B, and AB. 94-99% of all US domestic cats are type A. Type AB is the rarest. There is no universal donor type.
Cats can successfully receive blood donations from dogs.
Bill Haast, known as the Snake Man, injected himself with venom every day for 60 years. He has been credited for saving numerous lives by donating his blood which is rich in antibodies.
In 2019, researchers from the University of British Columbia figured out how to convert blood type A into the universal Type O, which all patients can receive in a transfusion, regardless of their own blood type. This could broaden the supply of blood and ease shortages.
1 in 10,000 units of blood that are transfused in the US are the wrong kind of blood for the patient.
It was tradition in Ireland that if you donated a pint of blood, you'd receive a pint of Guinness to replace the lost iron.
Chile has the highest percentage of people belonging to one singular blood group. 85% of the population are O +ve.
Canadian researchers discovered how to convert blood types A, B and AB to universal donor O-negative. They found that human gut bacteria makes a class of enzymes which react with the non-O type red blood cells, essentially transforming them into O-negative.
Greyhounds are universal blood donors and can donate blood to almost any other breed of dog.
Cats have only three blood types: A, B, and AB. 94-99% of all US domestic cats are type A. Type AB is the rarest. There is no universal donor type.
Cats can successfully receive blood donations from dogs.
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