Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
This page was last edited on 18 February 2024, at 16:18 (UTC).; Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License; additional terms may apply.
Phlebotomy is the process of making a puncture in a vein, usually in the arm, with a cannula for the purpose of drawing blood. [1] The procedure itself is known as a venipuncture , which is also used for intravenous therapy .
Phlebotomy licensure is the process by which various regulatory bodies regulate the practice of phlebotomy within its jurisdiction through licensure. In many countries a license is not required, or is obtained through other broader qualifications (such as a medical license), while in others, professional phlebotomists are separately licensed.
Therapeutic phlebotomy refers to the drawing of a unit of blood in specific cases like hemochromatosis, polycythemia vera, porphyria cutanea tarda, etc., to reduce the number of red blood cells. [ 6 ] [ 7 ] The traditional medical practice of bloodletting is today considered to be a pseudoscience .
The Vacutainer was preceded by other vacuum-based phlebotomy technology such as the Keidel vacuum. The plastic tube version, known as Vacutainer PLUS, was developed at B-D in the early 1990s by E. Vogler, D. Montgomery and G. Harper amongst others of the Surface Science Group as US patents 5344611, 5326535, 5320812, 5257633 and 5246666. [17]
Physicians also examined blood via phlebotomy, they would observe the viscosity and color of the blood as it was draining from the patient and/or contained in a vial. The color and viscosity denoted whether the patient had an acute, major, or chronic disease; which also assisted the physician with the next course of action. [25]
Point-of-care testing (POCT), also called near-patient testing or bedside testing, is defined as medical diagnostic testing at or near the point of care—that is, at the time and place of patient care.
Clinical laboratory in a hospital setting showing several automated analysers.. A medical laboratory or clinical laboratory is a laboratory where tests are conducted out on clinical specimens to obtain information about the health of a patient to aid in diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease. [1]