Can transfusions of blood from one person to another are a type of tissue transplant?

Answer 1

Technically....yes.

A group of cells form tissue, a group of tissues form organs, a group of organs form systems, a group of systems comprise the body.

But, if we're going to get technical, the word transfusion is more applicable than the word transplant.

Trans- loosely means from one place to another. I think we agree there.

What exactly does a blood transfusion entail?Someone is blood depleted. They lost a lot recently in a car accident, in major surgery, or have been loosing a lot over a long period of time. Or their blood cells are dying more quickly than it should.

This person needs blood to get oxygen from the lungs to the parts of the body that needs it. This person needs more blood.

In the hospital, their blood is double checked against donated blood to make sure there's a suitable match to prevent allergic-type reactions.

Access is gained to the vein - it's like a very thin straw placed inside the vein.

The blood to be transfused comes in a plastic pack, and some plastic lines are used to connect this to the access (little straw) in the vein.

The blood is allowed to run in.

So, you can see why the suffix -fusion applies here. It's liquid that is being introduced, to mix with what is already there.

Compare this to what a transplant is:A person needs a new organ. (Thats because apart from blood, there is no other tissue you can just replace. It's gotta be at least an organ. Kidney, Liver, Cataract, Bone Marrow...)

It has to be matched for a WHOLE LOT MORE things that you have to match in blood. Very difficult to do.

The person getting the new organ has to be immunosuppressed, their immune system is knocked out so they don't fight the strange new thing.

To perform the transplant, MAJOR SURGERY must be performed. This is not without risk. I won't mention that here - speak to your doctor for specific concerns. Since your immune system is unable to fight, it is so much easier to get infections, even from everyday things that don't cause you to get ill usually.

You're gonna be suppressed for at least two years, and the risk of organ failure is still a valid concern even then.

A solid organ is transplanted. It definitely cannot be transfused.

Blood is transfused. It is fluid. You don't really take it out and put it in somewhere else, yet, technically that's done. But the mechanism of "trasplanting" it, as you are asking about, is different from what the term transplant would suggest.

If you walk around saying you had a blood tissue transplant, you won't be able to pay your health insurance, because that suggests all the complications I [refused to] mentioned above. Those things are described in terms of 5 year survival - people still living 5 years after. With a blood transfusion, the only thing is to make sure you're alright while it's happening and just after. It is unlikely anything would go wrong after that.

Answer 2

Blood is considered to be a connective tissue.