Blood transfusion can be life-saving. Anaesthetists regularly request and administer blood components to their patients. All anaesthetists must be familiar with indications and appropriate use of blood and blood components and their alternatives, but close liaison with haematology specialists and their local blood sciences laboratory is encouraged. Considerable changes in approaches to optimal use of blood components, together with the use of alternative products, have become apparent over the past decade, leading to a need to update previous guidelines and adapt them for the use of anaesthetists working throughout the hospital system.
Keywords: FFP indications; anaemia and coagulation; blood crossmatch; major haemorrhage; transfusion.
© 2016 The Authors. Anaesthesia published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland.