How much blood is needed in the U.S. each year?
According to the most recent data from the National Blood Data Resource Center, U.S. hospitals transfused nearly 14 million units of whole blood and red blood cells to 4.9 million patients in 2001 – that’s an average of 38,000 units of blood needed on any given day. Whole blood can be separated into its components red blood cells, plasma, and platelets. The total number of units of all of these components transfused in 2001 was 29 million. And the volume of blood transfused is increasing at the rate of 6% per year. In emergency conditions such as war or disaster, the need for blood may change.
