INTRA-ARTERIAL TRANSFUSION

To the Editor:  —In view of the interest in intra-arterial transfusion, an analysis of the available evidence seems timely. Eagerness to introduce procedures merely because they are new may prove detrimental to patients. It is therefore essential that one examine the facts carefully before drawing conclusions. The only well documented article that I could find on the subject is by Robinson, Trincher and Dennis (Surg. Gynec. & Obst. 87:694, 1948). This article reviews the results of animal experiments and clinical observations on intra-arterial transfusions.In the animal experiments, only nine animals were used, all of which were bled, and later given transfusions with their own blood, five by the intra-arterial route and four by the intravenous route. All nine animals survived, though one who had received an intra-arterial transfusion died of distemper two days later. The authors point out that the recovery time after intra-arterial transfusion ranged from four