
It is of critical importance in the treatment of many types of trauma which result in blood loss, and is therefore kept stocked universally in all medical facilities capable of treating trauma (e.g., trauma centers, hospitals, and ambulances) or that pose a risk of patient blood loss such as surgical suite facilities.īags of frozen plasma, from a person with hypercholesterolemia (left) and typical plasma (right) Plasmapheresis is a medical therapy that involves blood plasma extraction, treatment, and reintegration.įresh frozen plasma is on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines, the most important medications needed in a basic health system. Blood serum is blood plasma without clotting factors.

Blood plasma has a density of approximately 1,025 kg/m 3 (1.025 g/ml). For point-of-care testing applications, plasma can be extracted from whole blood via filtration or via agglutination to allow for rapid testing of specific biomarkers. The blood plasma is then poured or drawn off. īlood plasma is separated from the blood by spinning a vessel of fresh blood containing an anticoagulant in a centrifuge until the blood cells fall to the bottom of the tube. It plays a vital role in an intravascular osmotic effect that keeps electrolyte concentration balanced and protects the body from infection and other blood-related disorders. , etc.), hormones, carbon dioxide (plasma being the main medium for excretory product transportation), and oxygen. It is mostly water (up to 95% by volume), and contains important dissolved proteins (6–8% e.g., serum albumins, globulins, and fibrinogen), glucose, clotting factors, electrolytes ( Na +

It is the intravascular part of extracellular fluid (all body fluid outside cells). It makes up about 55% of the body's total blood volume. Blood plasma is a light amber-colored liquid component of blood in which blood cells are absent, but contains proteins and other constituents of whole blood in suspension.
