Question about Autologus Serum - Need your help!

[Tankie]

Hi there,

I'm about to try autologus serum for the first time. My question is as follows:

Given that each 5 mL Serum Separator Tube (SST) will yield approximately 2 mL of serum, how many mL of SST should I have collected if I want my supply to last for 2 months?

Thank you for your help.

[Hopeful2]

Hi Tankie,

I'm glad to hear that you are going to try serum tears. How often does your doc want you to use them? Is the serum going to be diluted at all? How long are you likely to be on them? All this will impact on how long your supply will last.

Every clinic seems to be following a slightly different protocol for the collection of serum. In Ottawa, they draw a donation bag of blood (approx. 500cc). The non-diluted serum is dispensed into bottles of 4mL each. Patients typically end up with about 50 bottles. I have mine dispensed into bottles of 3 mL. I usually go through one bottle every five days.

However, I know of another poster who has only about 8 vials (not sure of their size though) drawn at a time. I would suggest that you have the equivalent of 200 cc drawn. This would give you about 35 vials of 3mL each of serum, on average, about a six month supply. If you and your doctor are just trying this out to see if the serum tears would help, you could always go with a smaller draw (maybe 100 cc).
You should probably check out some of these details with your doctor.

The day before your blood draw, drink lots of fluids. Being well hydrated can increase the amount of serum in your blood! I would also advise avoiding known inflammatory agents: sugar, bad fats . . . As well as taking all the anti-inflammatory agents: fish/flax oil, vitamin C etc. You never know exactly how much of all this enters into your blood stream.

Check this all out with your doctor of course

[Tankie]

Wow, thanks Hopeful! Very useful information. Thank you

[PotatoCakes]

I get 10 vials drawn. 50% serum potency.
The first time, I was 10 vials for 10 bottles of drops. The 2nd time, I think I was 10 for 12 or 13 and the last time, I *almost* got 1 additional because I was really hydrated.
Not sure if vial sizes are consistent between countries or not but assuming they are, and you use your drops 6+ times a day (give or take how often I use mine) at 50% potency, 10 vials of blood should last you approximately 10-13 weeks. As PP mentioned, a lower potency will last you longer and if you're not well-hydrated, it is possible to end up with less than 10 bottles of drops with 10 vials of blood (when I had my first draw, I asked and the guy told me he had some patients who only got 8). Hydration is definitely key!

Good luck!

[Guest]

I get 100% serum drops (undiluted) - I get 12-15 of the 9ml vials of blood drawn and this lasts me for sure 3 months - I use 1 drop in each eye 4 times per day.

[Mawsky]

I have a question about the Serum drops, How are they different then the other drops? How do they help? I've heard them mentioned on here, but really unclear about them, I know that they are made from our blood, but other than that I don't really know how they work. Sorry for the lack of knowledge but I'm wondering if they could help me down the line.

[PotatoCakes]

Serum drops are made with your own serum, which is a part of your blood. If they are diluted, they are diluted with saline. 20% seems to be very common and the minimum based on studies I've read, I have 50%, and SAAG has 100% so no dilution, so there is quite a range. They are preservative free and require refrigeration. It would be highly unlikely for someone to be allergic to them simply because they are made from your own body. Problems can occur, though, if they are contaminated or not properly stored. Studies show that serum drops have healing properties not found in over-the-counter / commercially produced drops. They can't make you produce tears but they offer the same benefits, or more, of real tears, healing, to some degree, abrasions, etc.

Based on personal experience, I highly recommend them, particularly for anyone that hasn't tried them and is considering more extreme measures like surgery.

This post provides more information: http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/showt...ighlight=serum

and this post: http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/showt...ighlight=serum contains some of the sources for serum drops. Your doctor will need to contact a lab to arrange them.