Blood bag standards need revising, say French:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
The French healthcare products safety agency, AFSSAPS, has called for a change in existing international standards for the compatibility of transfusion tubing devices with blood bags following "numerous incidents" where the bags have punctured on insertion of the tubing. This has occurred despite the existence of two international standards that in theory guarantee the compatibility of the two components. Bag punctures result in a potentially hazardous leakage of blood. The problems could be occurring because healthcare professionals are using too much force when inserting the tubing, in which case a cover on the perforating end of the tubing could help minimise the problem, the French agency suggests.