Elise​​ is a 36-year-old woman who has volunteered to donate red bone marrow to a patient in need of a bone marrow transplant for aplastic anemia. The physician performing the bone marrow extraction is an intern, and it is her first time doing the procedure. She asks that you prepare a site on Elise's tibia for the procedure. Is this a good place for red bone marrow to be extracted, considering Elise's age? Why or why not? Can you suggest an alternative location? Explain.

Video transcript

Hi, everyone. Let's take a look at this practice problem together. A male child was rushed to a hospital after his parents observed several unexplainable bruises all over his body. The laboratory results revealed an issue with his platelet count. Following the doctor's recommendation, the child is scheduled for a bone marrow biopsy to obtain a more accurate diagnosis. What is the preferred site for a bone marrow biopsy in Children? The answer options are a iliac crest b, humerus c thorax and D vertebrae. So, recall that bone marrow is where blood cells are made including platelets, bone marrow is that spongy tissue that's inside the bones. And the biopsy is done using a needle to draw out a sample. So what site of bone is most preferred? There are characteristics for a preferred site? A preferred site for bone marrow biopsy is an area that has easy access. It contains a adequate amount of bone marrow and it is not near vital organs. So let's take a look at those answer options. Again, option D vertebrae, well, vertebrae are around bones and they are near the spinal cord. The spinal cord is a vital part of the body So this is not a good option for the biopsy. And we can eliminate option D option C the thorax, the bones in the thorax are too close to vital organs like the lungs and the heart. And in addition, these bones are thin. So the access is easy. However, it wouldn't contain adequate amounts of marrow and it is too near vital organs. So, option C is incorrect. Option B the humerus, this is a bone with easy access. However, it is a round bone. If we compare that to option A, the iliac crest, the iliac crest is a flat bone. It's easy to access and it is not by vital organs. So, between iliac crest and humerus, the preferred site is the iliac crest. The correct answer is option a iliac crest. All right, everyone. I hope you found this helpful and I'll see you soon for the next practice problem.