Comparison of stored red blood cell washing techniques for priming extracorporeal circuits

Background:The aim of this study was to compare three different blood washing techniques and describe the differences for the composition of the washed red blood cells (RBC).Methods:Stored RBCs less than 5 days old were washed using three different techniques. 1) Washing with normal saline with the COBE Model 2991 blood processor in the blood bank (BB-S). 2) Washing with normal saline with the Continuous AutoTransfusion System (C.A.T.S) in the operating room (OR-S). 3) Washing with Plasma-Lyte with the C.A.T.S in the operating room (OR-PL). Then, we compared the values for hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (Hct), blood volume, RBC volume, lactate, glucose, sodium and potassium of the three different groups.Results:Forty-five units of RBCs were washed and analyzed (15 for each technique). The OR-S RBCs, when compared to the BB-S RBCs, had lower hemoglobin (g/dL) (22.8 vs 24.1, p=0.006), lower hematocrit (%) (67 vs 71, p=0.006), higher RBC volume (ml) (161 vs 130, p<0.001), higher glucose (mg/dL) (185 vs 46, p<0....