The Effect of Blood Transfusions on Competitive Sports

When not acting as the vice chairman of Stony Brook Medicine’s Department of Anesthesiology, Elliott Bennett-Guerrero participates in triathlons and has completed 3 half-ironman events. Stemming from his involvement in the sport, Elliott Bennett-Guerrero has become interested in how blood transfusions affect athletes’ performance.

Autologous blood transfusions (ABTs) increase athletes’ performance by improving their bodies’ ability to send oxygen to muscles during rigorous activity. This is also called blood doping. Athletes serve as their own blood source by withdrawing some blood several weeks before an event and separating the red blood cells from the plasma via centrifuge. The day before the race, once the athlete’s body finishes recouping the lost blood cells, they inject the withdrawn ones, increasing their red blood cell count. Because red blood cells deliver oxygen, increasing blood cell counts improves endurance and speed in exercise types of all intensities and lengths, without increasing cardiovascular activity.

ABTs can produce noticeable results even with small dosages. Even amounts as small as 135 mL, or about half the volume of a traditional blood bag, can heighten efficiency, while leaving minimal physiological effects for anti-doping tests to detect. The primary way sporting event organizers can detect blood-doping is by measuring hemoglobin levels over time. Sudden spikes in hemoglobin levels strongly indicate blood doping occurred.