Associated criteria used in investigating suspected septic transfusion reactions: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Septic transfusion reactions (STRs) occur as a result of bacterial contamination of blood or blood products, resulting in sepsis. This scoping review aimed to identify, explore and map the available literature on the STR criteria triggering the investigation of STR. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four electronic databases (MEDLINE, Web of Science, Science Direct, Embase) were searched to retrieve scientific literature reporting such criteria, published from 1 January 2000 to 5 May 2022. Grey literature was also searched from open web sources. RESULTS: Of 1052 references identified, 43 (21 peer-reviewed and 22 grey literature) met the eligibility criteria for inclusion and data extraction after full article screening. Of them, most (27/43, 62.79%) were found to report a single set of criteria, and only two reported four or more sets of criteria. The analysis of 66 sets of criteria collected from the selected references revealed 57 different sets. A few sets of criteria used only one sign and symptom (s/s) (12.12%, n = 8), whereas 16 sets used 7-15 s/s (n = 16/66; 24.24%). Of the total 319 occurrences of s/s associated with the 66 sets of criteria, post-transfusion hyperthermia, body temperature increase and hypotension were the most common s/s categories. Of all the literature available, only one study tested the diagnostic accuracy of the STR criteria. CONCLUSION: This scoping review revealed a substantial variation in criteria used to identify suspected STR. Consequently, conducting further studies to enhance the diagnostic accuracy of these criteria, which trigger STR investigations, is imperative for advancing clinical practice.

Study protocol of associated criteria used in investigating septic transfusion reactions (STRs): A scoping review about available evidence.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Assessment criteria for septic transfusion reactions (STRs) are variable around the world. A scoping review will be carried out to find out, explore and map existing literature on STRs associated criteria. METHODS: This scoping review will include indexed and grey literatures available in English or French language from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2021. Literature search will be conducted using four electronic databases (i.e., MEDLINE via PubMed, Web of Science, Science Direct, and Embase via Ovid), and grey literatures accompanying the research questions and objectives. Based on the inclusion criteria, studies will be independently screened by two reviewers for title, abstract, and full text. Extracted data will be presented in tabular form followed by a narrative description of inputs corresponding to research objectives and questions.