National Institutes of Health
- The primary NIH organization for research on Blood is the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
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National Institutes of Health
Blood
Your blood is living tissue made up of liquid and solids. The liquid part, called plasma, is made of water, salts, and protein. Over half of your blood is plasma. The solid part of your blood contains red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
Red blood cells deliver oxygen from your lungs to your tissues and organs. White blood cells fight infection and are part of your body's defense system. Platelets help blood to clot when you have a cut or wound. Bone marrow, the spongy material inside your bones, makes new blood cells. Blood cells constantly die and your body makes new ones. Red blood cells live about 120 days, platelets 6 days and white cells less than a day.
Problems with your blood include bleeding disorders and platelet disorders. If you lose too much blood, you may need a transfusion.
The top row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Basics
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Learn More
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Multimedia & Cool Tools
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For group Basics
For group Learn More
The bottom row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Research
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Reference Shelf
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For You
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For group Research
For group Reference Shelf
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Overviews
- Blood Basics(American Society of Hematology)
- What Is Blood?(AABB, America's Blood Centers)
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Latest News
- Your Blood Type May Boost Your Heart Risk, Study Finds(08/14/2012, HealthDay)
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Diagnosis/Symptoms
- Blood Smear(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
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Blood Tests(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
- Complete Blood Count(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
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Specific Conditions
- Blood Types(American Red Cross)
- Return to top
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Videos
- Red blood cell production - Encyclopedia
- Also available in Spanish
- Return to top
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Games
- Blood Type Game(American Red Cross)
- Play the Blood Typing Game(Nobel Foundation)
- Return to top
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Anatomy/Physiology
- Biology of Blood(Merck & Co., Inc.)
- Return to top
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Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Blood Cells(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Blood Cells
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Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
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Dictionaries/Glossaries
- Hematology Glossary(American Society of Hematology)
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Directories
- Find a Hematologist(American Society of Hematology)
- Red Cross Blood Services Regions(American Red Cross)
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Organizations
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Statistics
- 56 Facts about Blood(America's Blood Centers)
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Children
- What's Blood?(Nemours Foundation)
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Teenagers
- Blood(Nemours Foundation)
- Also available in Spanish
- Blood Types(Nemours Foundation)
- Also available in Spanish
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You may also be interested in these related encyclopedia pages:
MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA
