SAMBALPUR: A single donor platelet facility to ensure smooth supply of the blood component to requiring patients would soon start functioning at VIMSAR, Burla. Associate Professor in Transfusion Medicine department CR Prasad said, “We are planning to make the facility operational within the next one week. While the department already has apheresis machine to extract specific components of blood, we only need kits to start the platelet collection. We have initiated the process to procure the kits and will start SDP facility soon.”
At present, platelet is separated from whole blood collected from donors and transfused to patients with low blood platelet count. However, patients suffering from such disorder require a large amount of platelet due to which it is pooled from multiple random donors.
Prasad said, “Usually people suffering from cancer, dengue and aplastic anaemia need platelet transfusion. If these patients are given platelet of a single-donor, it will help restore the count much faster.” With the beginning of SDP facility, rather than drawing whole blood, only the required amount of platelet will be extracted and the rest of the components can be transfused back to the donor. “Once operational, VIMSAR will be the first hospital in Western Odisha to have the facility,” Prasad claimed.