INTEGRATED PLASMAPHERESIS SYSTEM FOR BLOOD SAMPLING IN NEONATAL CARE

Newborn infants needing intensive care after birth require routine blood sampling for tests to monitor their health.The current neonatal blood sampling procedures are suboptimal as they are adapted from techniques used for adults.As preterm neonates could have circulating blood volumes as low as 50-60 ml, repeated sampling-related blood loss poses a risk for anemia and other morbidities.Here, we propose an adapted blood sampling technique.In this closed-loop on-line acoustofluidic system (Fig. 1), blood is drawn from the neonate, blood plasma is separated for clinical analyses while the blood cells are returned to the neonate.