Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39696472›Full record

ReviewConflict and health2024

Fresh whole blood: A feasible alternative in disasters and mass casualty incidents? a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Alba Ripoll-Gallardo, Marta Caviglia, Matteo Ratti, Daniele Ceriotti, Grazia Meneghetti, Luca Pigozzi, Maria Brönstad, Luca Ragazzoni, Francesco Barone-Adesi

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Conflict and health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Establishing a multinational walking blood bank in Haiti: operational, regulatory, and cultural lessons from the MSSM mission.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2026
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Alba Ripoll-Gallardo *CRIMEDIM - Center for Research and Training in Disaster Medicine, Humanitarian Aid and Global Health, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy. a.ripoll@areu.lombardia.it.
Marta Caviglia *CRIMEDIM - Center for Research and Training in Disaster Medicine, Humanitarian Aid and Global Health, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy. marta.caviglia@med.uniupo.it.
Matteo RattiDepartment of Translational Medicine, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy.
Daniele CeriottiDepartment of Translational Medicine, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy.
Grazia MeneghettiCRIMEDIM - Center for Research and Training in Disaster Medicine, Humanitarian Aid and Global Health, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy.
Luca PigozziWorld Health Organization (WHO), Geneva, Switzerland.
Maria BrönstadDepartment of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
Luca RagazzoniCRIMEDIM - Center for Research and Training in Disaster Medicine, Humanitarian Aid and Global Health, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy.
Francesco Barone-AdesiCRIMEDIM - Center for Research and Training in Disaster Medicine, Humanitarian Aid and Global Health, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy.

Funding

World Health Organization 001
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionWhile balanced blood component therapy (BCT) is pivotal in trauma patient damage control resuscitation in well-resourced settings, disasters, and mass casualty incidents (MCIs) pose significant challenges, especially in securing sufficient access to blood products. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to explore the utilization of fresh whole blood (FWB) transfusion as a potential alternative to BCT, informing future research and clinical strategies.

methodsWe searched Pubmed, MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, the Cochrane Library and grey literature for articles identifying FWB transfusions, limited to those published in English or French. We evaluated the outcomes of post-FWB transfusion and conducted a meta-analysis comparing overall mortality in patients receiving FWB in addition to BCT during damage control resuscitation with those receiving BCT or single blood components alone.

resultsOf the 4830 studies identified, only 74 articles met all the eligibility criteria; the majority of them were conducted in military contexts. Mortality was lower among the FWB group compared to the BCT alone group, with a pooled OR of 0.61 (95% CI: 0.38-0.98) overall, and a pooled OR of 0.47 (95% CI: 0.25-0.87) among studies adjusting for confounders. FWB transfusion related complications rarely occurred.

conclusionsWhile FWB shows potential as an alternative to BCT for managing severe haemorrhagic shock in disasters and MCIs, additional research is essential to validate FWB's efficacy before considering it as a standard approach in civilian scenarios. Further studies focusing on the feasibility of implementing FWB in civilian contexts are also warranted.

Indexed as

Damage control resuscitation\DisastersFresh whole bloodMass casualty incidentsWalking blood banks

Identifiers

PMID39696472
PMCPMC11656982

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.