Blood Transfusion and Blood Donation

T4P (Threshold for Platelets)

Addressing priority 2: NIHR research in progress

Platelets are cells in your blood that help form clots and stop bleeding. Patients treated in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) often have fewer platelets in their blood than healthy people. The platelet count is the number of platelets in the blood. If a patient's platelet count is low, doctors often give platelets collected from a healthy blood donor. This is called a platelet transfusion. The aim of giving a platelet transfusion during a procedure is to prevent bleeding. This study aims to discover the platelet count below which patients requiring Intensive Care should be given platelets to have a procedure that may cause bleeding.