Novel method for determining when a field-collected donor unit is sufficiently full.

BACKGROUND: Whole blood (WB) collections can occur downrange for immediate administration. An important aspect of these collections is determining when the unit is sufficiently full. This project tested a novel method for determining when a field collection is complete. METHODS: The amount of empty space at the top of WB units, destined to become LTOWB or separated into components, that were collected at blood centers or hospitals was measured by holding a WB unit off the ground and placing the top of a piece of string where the donor tubing entered the bag. The string was marked where it intersected the top of the column of blood in the bag and measured from the top. The WB units were also weighed. RESULTS: A total of 15 different bags, two of which were measured in two different filling volumes, from 15 hospitals or blood centers were measured and weighed. The most commonly used blood bag, Terumo Imuflex SP, had a median string length of 9 mm (range: 2-24 mm) and weighed a median of 565.1 g (range: 524.8-636.7 g). CONCLUSION: Pieces of string can be precut to the appropriate length depending on the type of bag before a mission where field WB collections might be required and a mark placed on the bag before the collection commences to indicate when the unit is full.

The healthy donor effect and survey participation, becoming a donor and donor career.

BACKGROUND: The healthy donor effect (HDE) is a selection bias caused by the health criteria blood donors must meet. It obscures investigations of beneficial/adverse health effects of blood donation and complicates the generalizability of findings from blood donor cohorts. To further characterize the HDE we investigated how self-reported health and lifestyle are associated with becoming a blood donor, lapsing, and donation intensity. Furthermore, we examined differences in mortality based on donor status. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The Danish National Health Survey was linked to the Scandinavian Donations and Transfusions (SCANDAT) database and Danish register data. Logistic- and normal regression was used to compare baseline characteristics and participation. Poisson regression was used to investigate future donation choices. Donation intensity was explored by the Anderson-Gill model and Poisson regression. Mortality was investigated using Poisson regression. RESULTS: Blood donors were more likely to participate in the surveys, OR = 2.45 95% confidence interval (2.40-2.49) than non-donors. Among survey participants, better self-reported health and healthier lifestyle were associated with being or becoming a blood donor, donor retention, and to some extent donation intensity, for example, current smoking conveyed lower likelihood of becoming a donor, OR = 0.70 (0.66-0.75). We observed lower mortality for donors and survey participants, respectively, compared with non-participating non-donors. CONCLUSION: We provide evidence that blood donation is associated with increased likelihood to participate in health surveys, possibly a manifestation of the HDE. Furthermore, becoming a blood donor, donor retention, and donation intensity was associated with better self-reported health and healthier lifestyles.

Hospital red blood cell and platelet supply and utilization from March to December of the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: The BEST collaborative study.

BACKGROUND: At the start of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, widespread blood shortages were anticipated. We sought to determine how hospital blood supply and blood utilization were affected by the first wave of COVID-19. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Weekly red blood cell (RBC) and platelet (PLT) inventory, transfusion, and outdate data were collected from 13 institutions in the United States, Brazil, Canada, and Denmark from March 1st to December 31st of 2020 and 2019. Data from the sites were aligned based on each site's local first peak of COVID-19 cases, and data from 2020 (pandemic year) were compared with data from the corresponding period in 2019 (pre-pandemic baseline). RESULTS: RBC inventories were 3% lower in 2020 than in 2019 (680 vs. 704, p < .001) and 5% fewer RBCs were transfused per week compared to 2019 (477 vs. 501, p < .001). However, during the first COVID-19 peak, RBC and PLT inventories were higher than normal, as reflected by deviation from par, days on hand, and percent outdated. At this time, 16% fewer inpatient beds were occupied, and 43% fewer surgeries were performed compared to 2019 (p < .001). In contrast to 2019 when there was no correlation, there was, in 2020, significant negative correlations between RBC and PLT days on hand and both percentage occupancy of inpatient beds and percentage of surgeries performed. CONCLUSION: During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, RBC and PLT inventories remained adequate. During the first wave of cases, significant decreases in patient care activities were associated with excess RBC and PLT supplies and increased product outdating.

Frequent blood donation and offspring birth weight-a next-generation association?

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of iron depletion is high among premenopausal women who donate blood frequently. Studies in nondonor populations indicate that iron deficiency anemia is associated with an increased risk of low birth weight. This prompts concerns that iron deficiency induced by frequent blood donation might impair subsequent fetal development. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The aim of this study was to assess whether prepregnancy donation intensity affects the birth weight of singletons born at term (gestational week 38 or later) to nulliparous female donors in Denmark. We identified 293,897 first live singleton births to Danish women between 1997 and 2012 with complete information on gestational age, birth weight, child sex, parental age, maternal smoking status during pregnancy, and parental education length and annual income. Linear regression analysis was applied, with birth weight as outcome, number of donations within the 3 years before pregnancy as the explanatory variable, and confounding variables as described. RESULTS: Birth weight among children of low-intensity donors (n = 22,120) was 12.6 g (95% confidence interval, 6.7-18.6) higher than nondonors (n = 268,253) after controlling for the above-mentioned factors. The higher birth weight among low-intensity donors can be explained by the healthy donor effect. In fully adjusted analyses, birth weight among children of high-intensity donors (n = 3,524) was 20.2 g (95% confidence interval, 5.1-35.3 g) lower compared with low-intensity donors. This reduced birth weight among high-intensity donors compared to low-intensity donors may reflect blood donation-induced iron deficiency. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that high prepregnancy donation intensity is inversely associated with birth weight of singletons born at term to nulliparous women.

Blood Sample Transportation by Pneumatic Transportation Systems: A Systematic Literature Review.

BACKGROUND: Pneumatic transportation systems (PTSs) are increasingly used for transportation of blood samples to the core laboratory. Many studies have investigated the impact of these systems on different types of analyses, but to elucidate whether PTSs in general are safe for transportation of blood samples, existing literature on the subject was systematically assessed. METHODS: A systematic literature review was conducted following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and metaanalyses (PRISMA) Statement guidelines to gather studies investigating the impact of PTS on analyses in blood samples. Studies were extracted from PubMed and Embase. The search period ended November 2016. RESULTS: A total of 39 studies were retrieved. Of these, only 12 studies were conducted on inpatients, mainly intensive care unit patients. Blood gases, hematology, and clinical chemistry were well investigated, whereas coagulation, rotational thromboelastometry, and platelet function in acutely ill patients were addressed by only 1 study each. Only a few parameters were affected in a clinically significant way (clotting time parameter in extrinsic system thromboelastometry, pO2 in blood gas, multiplate analysis, and the hemolysis index). CONCLUSIONS: Owing to their high degree of heterogeneity, the retrieved studies were unable to supply evidence for the safety of using PTSs for blood sample transportation. In consequence, laboratories need to measure and document the actual acceleration forces in their existing PTS, instituting quality target thresholds for these measurements such as acceleration vector sums. Computer modeling might be applied to the evaluation of future PTS installations. With the increasing use of PTS, a harmonized, international recommendation on this topic is warranted.

Storage time of platelet concentrates and risk of a positive blood culture: a nationwide cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Concern of transfusion-transmitted bacterial infections has been the major hurdle to extend shelf life of platelet (PLT) concentrates. We aimed to investigate the association between storage time and risk of positive blood cultures at different times after transfusion. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: We performed a nationwide cohort study among PLT transfusion recipients in Denmark between 2010 and 2012, as recorded in the Scandinavian Donations and Transfusions (SCANDAT2) database. Linking with a nationwide database on blood cultures (MiBa), we compared the incidence of a positive blood culture among recipients of PLTs stored 6 to 7 days (old) to those receiving fresh PLTs (1-5 days), using Poisson regression models. We considered cumulative exposures in windows of 1, 3, 5, and 7 days. RESULTS: A total of 9776 patients received 66,101 PLT transfusions. The incidence rate ratio (IRR) of a positive blood culture the day after transfusion of at least one old PLT concentrate was 0.77 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54-1.09) compared to transfusion of fresh PLT concentrates. The incidence rate of a positive blood culture was lower the day after receiving one old compared to one fresh PLT concentrate (IRR, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.37-0.87). Three, 5, or 7 days after transfusion, storage time was not associated with the risk of a positive blood culture. CONCLUSION: Storage of buffy coat-derived PLT concentrates in PAS-C up to 7 days seems safe regarding the risk of a positive blood culture. If anything, transfusion of a single old PLT concentrate may decrease this risk the following day.

Changes in plasma unit distributions to hospitals over a 10-year period.

BACKGROUND: There are many influences on a hospital's demand for plasma. Pharmaceuticals are now being administered for many indications instead of plasma, although trauma resuscitation now emphasizes increased and early intervention with plasma. This multinational study evaluated changes in blood center plasma unit distributions over a 10-year period. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Data on the total number and the ABO groups of plasma unit distributions were obtained from nine American blood collectors (ABCs) and nine national or provincial blood services (NPBS) from 2007 through 2016. Plasma distributions to trauma hospitals by five ABCs and four NPBS were also analyzed. RESULTS: The overall number of plasma unit distributions from ABCs decreased by 23.1% from 2007 to 2016, but the relative proportion of distributed AB plasma units increased during the same period. The NPBS (excluding the Japanese Red Cross [JRC]) also had a 35.4% decrease in the overall number of plasma unit distributions with an increase in the relative proportion of AB plasma distributions between 2007 and 2016. The JRC, however, reported an increase in the overall number of plasma distributions by 13.5% in 2016 compared to 2007. The proportion of low-titer A plasma distributions increased to 1.6% of total plasma distributions by ABCs in 2016. There was a trend of distributing increasing proportions of group AB plasma units to trauma hospitals over the 10-year period. CONCLUSION: Although the number of plasma unit distributions has decreased at many blood collectors over time, the proportion of AB units has increased at both ABCs and NPBS.

Epidemiology of chronic red-cell transfusion recipients in Sweden and Denmark-a 10 year follow-up study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Chronic red-cell transfusions may be an indispensable part of patient treatment and may require early intervention to avoid adverse transfusion effects. The population of chronic transfusion recipients including common diagnoses and survival remains poorly characterised. Thus, the objective was to examine the complete range of chronic transfusion recipients, including demographic and patient characteristics and survival. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients who received their first transfusion in Sweden or Denmark from January 1, 2002 to December 31, 2010 were followed up for subsequent transfusion episodes until December 31, 2012. Data on patient characteristics at time of the first and subsequent transfusions were retrieved from the national registers. We estimated the proportion of transfused patients who experienced 20 or more red-cell transfusion episodes (with an episode defined as all transfusions received 4 days or less apart) and characterised this patient population with respect to diagnoses, demographics and survival. RESULTS: Among 893 117 first time red-cell transfusion recipients, 6157 (0·7%) experienced 20 or more episodes in total. The most common diagnoses among these patients were haematologic malignancies followed by non-haematologic malignancies and non-malignant blood and immune system related diseases. On average, chronically transfused patients had a median survival of less than 1 year following their 20th transfusion episode. CONCLUSION: This study provides an overview of patient characteristics related to repeat red-cell transfusions and of the amount of red-cell transfusion episodes administered during a 10-year period in two countries. Patients who become chronically transfused suffer from diseases with poor prognosis.

ABO Blood Group and Risk of Thromboembolic and Arterial Disease: A Study of 1.5 Million Blood Donors.

BACKGROUND: ABO blood groups have been shown to be associated with increased risks of venous thromboembolic and arterial disease. However, the reported magnitude of this association is inconsistent and is based on evidence from small-scale studies. METHODS AND RESULTS: We used the SCANDAT2 (Scandinavian Donations and Transfusions) database of blood donors linked with other nationwide health data registers to investigate the association between ABO blood groups and the incidence of first and recurrent venous thromboembolic and arterial events. Blood donors in Denmark and Sweden between 1987 and 2012 were followed up for diagnosis of thromboembolism and arterial events. Poisson regression models were used to estimate incidence rate ratios as measures of relative risk. A total of 9170 venous and 24 653 arterial events occurred in 1 112 072 individuals during 13.6 million person-years of follow-up. Compared with blood group O, non-O blood groups were associated with higher incidence of both venous and arterial thromboembolic events. The highest rate ratios were observed for pregnancy-related venous thromboembolism (incidence rate ratio, 2.22; 95% confidence interval, 1.77-2.79), deep vein thrombosis (incidence rate ratio, 1.92; 95% confidence interval, 1.80-2.05), and pulmonary embolism (incidence rate ratio, 1.80; 95% confidence interval, 1.71-1.88). CONCLUSIONS: In this healthy population of blood donors, non-O blood groups explain >30% of venous thromboembolic events. Although ABO blood groups may potentially be used with available prediction systems for identifying at-risk individuals, its clinical utility requires further comparison with other risk markers.

No evidence of transmission of chronic lymphocytic leukemia through blood transfusion.

Monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis (MBL) is a precursor of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Observations of MBL in blood donors raise concern that transmitted MBL may cause recipient CLL. Using a database with health information on 1.5 million donors and 2.1 million recipients, we compared CLL occurrence among 7413 recipients of blood from 796 donors diagnosed with CLL after donation cessation, and among 80, 431 recipients of blood from 7477 matched CLL-free donors. During follow-up, 12 and 107 cases of CLL occurred among the exposed and unexposed recipients, respectively, yielding a relative risk of 0.94 (95% confidence interval, 0.52-1.71). Analyses using the entire database showed no evidence of CLL clustering among recipients of blood from individual donors. In conclusion, when donor MBL was approximated by subsequent donor CLL diagnosis, data from 2 countries' entire computerized transfusion experience over more than 30 years indicate that MBL/CLL transmission does not contribute importantly to recipient CLL risk.

Transmission of Neurodegenerative Disorders Through Blood Transfusion: A Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: The aggregation of misfolded proteins in the brain occurs in several neurodegenerative disorders. Aberrant protein aggregation is inducible in rodents and primates by intracerebral inoculation. Possible transfusion transmission of neurodegenerative diseases has important public health implications. OBJECTIVE: To investigate possible transfusion transmission of neurodegenerative disorders. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Nationwide registers of transfusions in Sweden and Denmark. PARTICIPANTS: 1 465 845 patients who received transfusions between 1968 and 2012. MEASUREMENTS: Multivariable Cox regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios for dementia of any type, Alzheimer disease, and Parkinson disease in patients receiving blood transfusions from donors who were later diagnosed with any of these diseases versus patients who received blood from healthy donors. Whether excess occurrence of neurodegenerative disease occurred among recipients of blood from a subset of donors was also investigated. As a positive control, transmission of chronic hepatitis before and after implementation of hepatitis C virus screening was assessed. RESULTS: Among included patients, 2.9% received a transfusion from a donor diagnosed with one of the studied neurodegenerative diseases. No evidence of transmission of any of these diseases was found, regardless of approach. The hazard ratio for dementia in recipients of blood from donors with dementia versus recipients of blood from healthy donors was 1.04 (95% CI, 0.99 to 1.09). Corresponding estimates for Alzheimer disease and Parkinson disease were 0.99 (CI, 0.85 to 1.15) and 0.94 (CI, 0.78 to 1.14), respectively. Hepatitis transmission was detected before but not after implementation of hepatitis C virus screening. LIMITATION: Observational study design, underascertainment of the outcome, and possible insufficient statistical power. CONCLUSION: The data provide no evidence for the transmission of neurodegenerative diseases and suggest that if transmission does occur, it is rare. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: Swedish Research Council, Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation, Swedish Society for Medical Research, and Danish Council for Independent Research.

Epidemiology of Massive Transfusion: A Binational Study From Sweden and Denmark.

OBJECTIVE: There is an increasing focus on massive transfusion, but there is a paucity of comprehensive descriptions of the massively transfused patients and their outcomes. The objective of this study is to describe the incidence rate of massive transfusion, patient characteristics, and the mortality of massively transfused patients. DESIGN: Descriptive cohort study. SETTING: Nationwide study with data from Sweden and Denmark. PATIENTS: The study was based on the Scandinavian Donations and Transfusions database, including all patients receiving 10 or more red cell concentrate transfusions in Sweden from 1987 and in Denmark from 1996. A total of 92,057 patients were included. Patients were followed until the end of 2012. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Descriptive statistics were used to characterize the patients and indications. Post transfusion mortality was expressed as crude 30-day mortality and as long-term mortality using the Kaplan-Meier method and using standardized mortality ratios. The incidence of massive transfusion was higher in Denmark (4.5 per 10,000) than in Sweden (2.5 per 10,000). The most common indication for massive transfusion was major surgery (61.2%) followed by trauma (15.4%). Massive transfusion due to obstetrical bleeding constituted only 1.8%. The overall 5-year mortality was very high (54.6%), however with large differences between indication groups, ranging from 91.1% among those transfused for a malignant disease without surgery to 1.7% among patients transfused for obstetrical bleeding. The early standardized mortality ratios were high and decreased thereafter, but remained elevated throughout the time period. CONCLUSIONS: This large-scale study based on nationwide data from Sweden and Denmark describes the complete range of massive transfusion. We report a nonnegligible incidence and both a high absolute mortality and high standardized mortality ratio. The general pattern was similar for Sweden and Denmark, and we believe that similar patterns may be found in other high-resource countries. The study provides a relevant background for clinicians and researchers for designing future studies in this field.

The new Scandinavian Donations and Transfusions database (SCANDAT2): a blood safety resource with added versatility.

BACKGROUND: Risks of transfusion-transmitted disease are currently at a record low in the developed world. Still, available methods for blood surveillance might not be sufficient to detect transmission of diseases with unknown etiologies or with very long incubation periods. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: We have previously created the anonymized Scandinavian Donations and Transfusions (SCANDAT) database, containing data on blood donors, blood transfusions, and transfused patients, with complete follow-up of donors and patients for a range of health outcomes. Here we describe the re-creation of SCANDAT with updated, identifiable data. We collected computerized data on blood donations and transfusions from blood banks covering all of Sweden and Denmark. After data cleaning, two structurally identical databases were created and the entire database was linked with nationwide health outcomes registers to attain complete follow-up for up to 47 years regarding hospital care, cancer, and death. RESULTS: After removal of erroneous records, the database contained 25,523,334 donation records, 21,318,794 transfusion records, and 3,692,653 unique persons with valid identification, presently followed over 40 million person-years, with possibility for future extension. Data quality is generally high with 96% of all transfusions being traceable to their respective donation(s) and a very high (>97%) concordance with official statistics on annual number of blood donations and transfusions. CONCLUSIONS: It is possible to create a binational, nationwide database with almost 50 years of follow-up of blood donors and transfused patients for a range of health outcomes. We aim to use this database for further studies of donor health, transfusion-associated risks, and transfusion-transmitted disease.

Management of an acute outbreak of diarrhoea-associated haemolytic uraemic syndrome with early plasma exchange in adults from southern Denmark: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: Diarrhoea-associated haemolytic uraemic syndrome in adults is a life-threatening, but rare multisystem disorder that is characterised by acute haemolytic anaemia, thrombocytopenia, and renal insufficiency. We aimed to assess the success of management of this disorder with plasma exchange therapy. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with diarrhoea-associated haemolytic uraemic syndrome in southern Denmark were treated with daily plasma exchange by centrifugation and substitution with fresh frozen plasma. Stool culture and serological testing was done to identify the cause of disease, and the success of management with plasma exchange therapy was assessed from change in platelet count, glomerular filtration rate, and lactate dehydrogenase. FINDINGS: During May 25-28, 2011, five patients with a median age of 62 years (range 44-70) presented with diarrhoea-associated haemolytic uraemic syndrome, which was caused by an unusual Shiga-toxin-producing Escherichia coli serotype O104:H4. Strains of E coli showed a high resistance to third-generation cephalosporins because the strains had extended-spectrum ß lactamases. After plasma exchange, median platelet count and glomerular filtration rate increased, median lactate dehydrogenase concentration decreased, and neurological status improved. The time interval from onset of bloody diarrhoea to start of plasma exchange had an inverse correlation with reduction of lactate dehydrogenase concentrations by plasma exchange (p=0.02). All patients were discharged with normal neurological status at 7 days (range 5-8) after starting plasma exchange. INTERPRETATION: Early plasma exchange might ameliorate the course of diarrhoea-associated haemolytic uraemic syndrome in adults. However, this finding should be verified in randomised controlled trials FUNDING: None.