Buzz
Today, blood transfusions are seen as a routine and reliable medical procedure, thanks to the medical breakthroughs of the last century. However, this wasn’t always the case. Prior to the 20th century, there were strange, unthinkable, and even dreadful experiments in trying to understand the circulatory system and how to save lives.
10. Early and Primitive Experimentation
In the 17th century, human blood was considered to be the “essence of life,” with its only perceived benefit being its alleged psychological effects. Due to this belief, nearly 200 years passed before whole blood was used as a replacement treatment for a British woman suffering from postpartum hemorrhage.
Years of trials preceded these medical advancements, with various liquids being experimented as substitutes for blood. The first recorded intravenous injection took place in London in 1657 when Christopher Wren injected ale and wine into a dog's veins.
The dog became intoxicated, and the experiment was deemed a success. Eight years later, the first animal-to-animal blood transfusion took place when Richard Lower used two dogs for his experiment.
After nearly bleeding a small dog to death, Lower opened the artery of a large mastiff and performed a transfusion, successfully reviving the exsanguinated animal. This demonstrated that blood transfusions were essential for restoring the circulatory system, sparking numerous experiments across Europe for the following three centuries.
9. Blood From the Dead
Before the discovery of blood typing in 1901 by Austrian physician Karl Landsteiner, blood transfusions often resulted in tragic outcomes. This breakthrough saved countless soldiers during World War I by ensuring compatibility in blood transfusions.
However, immediate and direct blood transfusions on the battlefield were critical for survival. Over the next twenty years, researchers debated how to store blood for later use, rather than relying on an immediate and matching donor.
By 1930, Soviet scientists Vladimir Shamov and Sergei Yudin discovered that blood from cadavers could be preserved for a short period. However, the practicality of this method remained uncertain.
On March 23, 1930, Yudin conducted the first successful transfusion using blood from a cadaver, although the practice was controversial due to the source. Despite this, refrigerated blood banks were established across Russia, paving the way for the modern technique of preserving blood for extended periods.
8. Crisis Averted
By 1938, the threat of World War II was becoming inevitable. That year, Brigadier Lionel Whitby was appointed as the head of an independent UK Army Blood Transfusion Service, which provided whole blood to military personnel from centralized blood depots.
Three years later, the United States faced a dilemma when they realized they couldn’t airlift US-donated blood to Europe or Africa, causing a severe shortage for US Allied forces. Consequently, Whitby was tasked with supplying blood to all military personnel at a time when blood reserves were running low.
To ensure that US soldiers would not perish on the battlefield while British troops took priority, President Franklin Roosevelt pressured Winston S. Churchill, threatening to bankrupt the British Empire. Churchill responded by ordering the use of Britain’s blood reserves to meet the needs of the West.
This situation continued until the spring of 1945, when all Allied forces became capable of long-distance transportation and storage of whole blood. In total, 100,000 pints were transported overseas. These events led to the formation of a national Blood Transfusion Service, earning Brigadier Whitby a knighthood.
7. Blood Donations
In 1984, HIV was recognized as the cause of AIDS, three years after the first reported case. The following year, blood banks in the US started implementing screening tests to detect the virus. However, the technology at the time was not advanced enough to identify specific viral antigens and antibodies.
By 1993, 1,098 people in the United States had contracted AIDS through blood transfusions. This brought public attention to the vulnerability of the general population to a disease that was little understood, shattering the misconception that HIV/AIDS was a condition affecting only the homosexual community. It also sparked growing resentment toward governmental and public health institutions, questioning every aspect of the nation’s health system, including biomedical and behavioral research.
Despite modern advancements in HIV testing, even the most sophisticated screening methods for donor blood cannot detect the virus within the first week of infection. According to the CDC, of the 16 million blood donations made annually, about 11 infectious donations and 20 HIV-positive blood components are released into public and hospital blood banks, potentially infecting numerous recipients.
6. Deadly Repercussions
In March 1995, as the promising Tejano artist Selena was tragically shot by Yolanda Saldivar, many wondered if her death could have been avoided. Court records show that while the 23-year-old was bleeding out, her father insisted on refusing a blood transfusion based on their Jehovah's Witness faith. Despite the opposition, doctors administered three liters of blood in an attempt to save her, but it was too late.
Such heartbreaking yet avoidable occurrences are all too familiar among Jehovah's Witnesses, who view receiving another person’s blood as sinful as committing adultery. Their understanding of the Book of Acts teaches that anyone who does not abide by these rules may be severed from their family and denied resurrection.
This conviction has resulted in countless preventable deaths among devout members in the United States. Just as Jehovah's Witnesses can refuse blood transfusions, doctors have the right to refrain from surgeries if they can't be performed safely without one. Thoracic surgeon Lyall Gorenstein likens this to a trapeze artist performing without a safety net, highlighting the risks of uncontrollable bleeding without transfusion options.
5. France 1667
In 1667, a 15-year-old boy in France was intentionally bled in a misguided effort to improve his health. Unfortunately, this procedure only worsened his condition, causing severe blood loss on top of his existing ailments. In response, Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys performed the first documented blood transfusion on a human, using sheep’s blood in an attempt to save him.
Remarkably, the boy survived the procedure. A second individual, whom Dr. Denys paid for his participation, also survived the transfusion. However, the third subject, Antoine Mauroy, did not share the same fate. Mauroy, a mentally disturbed Parisian who wandered the streets naked and shouting obscenities, was persuaded by Dr. Denys to undergo the transfusion.
After receiving three transfusions of calf’s blood, Mauroy tragically died, leading to Dr. Denys being charged with murder. Following a prolonged trial, the doctor was acquitted, but the court ruled that any future human blood transfusions in France would require the approval of the Paris Faculty of Medicine.
4. Street Transfusions
In the township of Delmas, Mpumalanga, South Africa, drug dealers operate openly on the streets in broad daylight, while the number of addicts continues to rise by the tens of thousands. Currently, nyaope is the drug of choice in the area, prized for its potency and the incredibly low cost of only $2 per dose.
This white, powdery substance—composed of marijuana, low-grade heroin, rat poison, and cleaning chemicals—can be smoked. However, it is more commonly mixed with water and injected to produce longer-lasting effects.
For those who can’t afford nyaope, which is considered one of the deadliest drugs in existence, there is a disturbing solution: fellow addicts often share their high. This “sharing” involves a gruesome practice referred to as a “transfusion of blood from an already high addict to a fellow addict.”
The already alarming overdose death toll continues to climb, while HIV cases soar due to these deadly practices. Dr. David Bayever of the Central Drug Authority states that 15 percent of South Africans abuse drugs, and 50 percent of children have tried drugs.
3. Fountain Of Youth
In the 17th century, a German physician proposed that the secret to unlocking the fountain of youth was to be transfused with 'the hot and spirituous blood of a young man.' This idea gained traction, and Soviet physician Alexander Bogdanov put it into practice in 1924, beginning experiments where he injected 'young blood' into his own veins.
Bogdanov, who is credited with founding the first institution dedicated to the study of blood transfusion, believed he had discovered a reliable method for extending life. He even insisted that with every transfusion, he felt his health improving.
In his misguided quest for immortality, the Soviet doctor’s fortunes ultimately turned when the blood he received was contaminated with malaria and tuberculosis, leading to his death. Intriguingly, Bogdanov's hypothesis might not have been completely unfounded, as a 2014 study published in Nature Medicine suggests.
According to the researchers, when aged mice were given plasma from young blood, their fear responses, spatial learning, and memory significantly improved. The study concluded that blood might actually have rejuvenating qualities that enhance cognitive function and learning abilities.
2. Transforming the Soul
As previously noted, the first blood transfusion to a human was carried out in 1667 by Dr. Denys, who used sheep’s blood. The selection of a sheep was not arbitrary, nor was it driven solely by the animal's availability during a time of need.
In truth, animals were chosen as blood donors based on particular factors, considering both the unique qualities of the animal and the characteristics of the human recipient. In the 17th century, it was widely believed that receiving foreign blood could alter one's soul, potentially transferring traits of the donor to the recipient.
As a result, the physicians conducting these experiments sought to pair blood from animals with specific personalities in hopes of achieving balance. For instance, if a patient was known for having a fiery temper, a calmer lamb was selected to soothe the individual's spirit and restore equilibrium.
Conversely, if the patient was introverted or shy, the blood of more social animals was used in an effort to make the individual more outgoing and sociable.
1. Blood for Wealth
Before William Harvey's discovery of intravenous circulation in 1628, it was widely believed that consuming another person's blood could have both health benefits and spiritual significance. During the Roman Republic and Empire, spectators would drink the blood of dying gladiators, thinking that by doing so, they could absorb the bravery and strength of these warriors.
One of the most absurd instances stemming from this misguided belief took place in 1492, when the first recorded blood transfusion attempt was documented by Stefano Infessura. After Pope Innocent VIII fell into a coma, Infessura wrote that three 10-year-old boys were each promised a ducat (gold coin) in exchange for donating their blood.
As the children were bled, their blood was transferred to the pope through his mouth. Unsurprisingly, the procedure failed, resulting in the deaths of all three boys, as well as the pope.
