Blood transfusion transfers blood or blood components from one person into another's circulation. French physician Jean-Baptiste Denys performed the first recorded animal-to-human transfusion on June 15, 1667, transferring sheep's blood into a fifteen-year-old boy, who survived only because the transfused volume was small; later fatal cases led authorities to ban the practice by 1668. British obstetrician James Blundell performed the first successful human-to-human transfusion in 1818, treating a case of postpartum hemorrhage at Guy's Hospital in London, and went on to perform ten transfusions with mixed results. Transfusion did not become reliably safe until Karl Landsteiner's 1901 discovery of the ABO blood groups explained why some transfusions succeeded and others caused fatal reactions. This atlas describes the history of the treatment and is not medical advice.
Facts
Disputed
Origin YearDated here to Landsteiner's 1901 discovery of blood groups, which made transfusion reliably safe; the practice of transfusion itself is far older, tracing to Jean-Baptiste Denys's documented but often fatal animal-to-human attempts beginning in 1667, so the origin year depends on whether the treatment is dated to first attempt or to first reliably safe practice. Blood Transfusion
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Associated With
Source Wikipedia: Rh Blood Group System
Long-Form Articles
Treats
Blood transfusion is standard treatment for severe hemolytic anemia.
Blood (exchange) transfusion is standard treatment for severe hemolytic disease of the newborn.
Blood transfusion is standard treatment for significant blood loss in postpartum hemorrhage.
Regular blood transfusion is the standard supportive treatment for moderate to severe thalassemia.
Sources
1. Wikipedia
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia FoundationLead section, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_transfusion
Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's circulation intravenously.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_transfusion, lead section
Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's circulation intravenously.
View the Source Wikipedia: Blood Transfusion
Wikipedialead
Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's circulation intravenously.
Human blood
In 1818, after experiments with animals, he performed the first successful transfusion of human blood to treat postpartum hemorrhage at Guy's Hospital in London.
View the Source Wikidata: Blood Transfusion
Wikidata Q183605, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Wikipedia: Rh Blood Group System
Frequently Asked Questions
Who performed the first successful human-to-human blood transfusion?
The first successful human blood transfusion was in 1818 at Guy's Hospital in London.
After experiments with animals, a physician performed the first successful transfusion of human blood in 1818, to treat postpartum hemorrhage at Guy's Hospital in London. Jean-Baptiste Denys of France had performed the first recorded transfusion earlier, and transfusion is still used for conditions such as postpartum hemorrhage, thalassemia and hemolytic anemia.
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