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Hospitals Still Waiting for Answers About Contaminated Blood
Aired February 06, 2003 - 14:41 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now, contaminated blood across the southeastern U.S. We're waiting for some answers to that mystery. Federal experts have been testing the strange white particles that first turned up in blood bags in Atlanta.
The CDC sent its findings to the Red Cross in Washington.
CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen now joins me with the details.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, hospitals are just waiting for some more information on this. They were told on Friday, hospitals here in Georgia and North Florida, don't use these certain lots of bags. Surgeries, elective surgeries had to be delayed, and in many places are still delayed. This has affected hospitals in Georgia and in parts of Tennessee and in Florida. Some hospitals are able to do elective surgeries, but they're using reserves that are meant really for emergencies, so that's obviously not the ideal.
Let's talk a little bit about these mysterious white particles, as Kyra called them. They're here in these bags of blood. You can see that large thing is actually a bubble, but the pen is pointing to some little white particles. If you look, you can see them. They have no idea what they are.
What they do know is they're not infectious, but they're still doing tests to figure out what exactly they might be. And so in the meantime, the Red Cross is telling hospitals in parts of those three states, don't do surgeries with this blood. And again, there are people who are waiting for elective surgeries. Can't have them, because there is not enough blood.
PHILLIPS: So whose fault is this?
COHEN: They are still trying to figure that out. The Red Cross is blaming Baxter, the company that makes the bags. They say the particles were in the bags, and then they could see them once they filled them up with blood. However, Baxter is blaming the Red Cross. They say the particles are something organic, or something that was in the blood to begin with.
PHILLIPS: All right. I know you'll be continuing to follow this story.
COHEN: Absolutely.
PHILLIPS: Thanks a lot, Elizabeth Cohen.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Blood>
Aired February 6, 2003 - 14:41 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now, contaminated blood across the southeastern U.S. We're waiting for some answers to that mystery. Federal experts have been testing the strange white particles that first turned up in blood bags in Atlanta.
The CDC sent its findings to the Red Cross in Washington.
CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen now joins me with the details.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, hospitals are just waiting for some more information on this. They were told on Friday, hospitals here in Georgia and North Florida, don't use these certain lots of bags. Surgeries, elective surgeries had to be delayed, and in many places are still delayed. This has affected hospitals in Georgia and in parts of Tennessee and in Florida. Some hospitals are able to do elective surgeries, but they're using reserves that are meant really for emergencies, so that's obviously not the ideal.
Let's talk a little bit about these mysterious white particles, as Kyra called them. They're here in these bags of blood. You can see that large thing is actually a bubble, but the pen is pointing to some little white particles. If you look, you can see them. They have no idea what they are.
What they do know is they're not infectious, but they're still doing tests to figure out what exactly they might be. And so in the meantime, the Red Cross is telling hospitals in parts of those three states, don't do surgeries with this blood. And again, there are people who are waiting for elective surgeries. Can't have them, because there is not enough blood.
PHILLIPS: So whose fault is this?
COHEN: They are still trying to figure that out. The Red Cross is blaming Baxter, the company that makes the bags. They say the particles were in the bags, and then they could see them once they filled them up with blood. However, Baxter is blaming the Red Cross. They say the particles are something organic, or something that was in the blood to begin with.
PHILLIPS: All right. I know you'll be continuing to follow this story.
COHEN: Absolutely.
PHILLIPS: Thanks a lot, Elizabeth Cohen.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Blood>
