Bovine Hemoglobin: A Nontraditional Approach to the Management of Acute Anemia in a Jehovah’s Witness Patient With Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia

Introduction: Management of severe symptomatic anemia in critically ill Jehovah’sWitness patients remains a challenge. The paucity of therapeutic alternatives to human red blood cells has prompted the use of blood substitutes. Case Report: A 19-year-old female Jehovah’s Witness patient presented to the emergency department following several episodes of syncope. She was found to have a positive Coombs test and was diagnosed with warm-bodied autoimmune hemolytic anemia. Upon admission, her hemoglobin was 8.4 g/dL, then dropped to a nadir of 2.8 g/dL 4 days later. She received traditional management with corticosteroids, intravenou