by Will » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:47 am
I'd forgotten what the point of blood transfusing was so just reminded myself from this [url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=features/2005/avoid_positive]neat summary[/url] (which though from 2005 is presumably still accurate). Thought I'd post it in case others wanted to remind themselves.
[quote]In a similar vein is autologous blood doping, which involves removing blood a few weeks prior to competition then replacing the red cells just before the event. The body has regenerated the blood in that time, so the additional red cells provide extra haemoglobin and therefore a greater oxygen capacity.
A more risky procedure is homologous blood doping, which involves injecting a different person's (with compatible blood) red blood cells, giving the same boost. Although it eliminates the inconvenience of an athlete to withdraw/regenerate their own blood in the first place, it carries with it a greater risk of contracting blood borne diseases such as HIV/AIDS, as well as becoming sensitised to minor blood group proteins, so that transfused blood may be rejected further down the line.
I wonder if it was a deliberate use of the word "vein"
Likewise, I am astounded the Vino resorted to using someone else's blood!