Significance of pre-storage leucoreduction for autologous blood

Background and Objectives  To reveal the associations between cytokines in blood and transfusion-related adverse events, we studied whether pre-storage leucoreduction of autologous blood could reduce the degree of inflammatory responses, infection rates, or the duration of hospitalizations. Materials and Methods  Patients scheduled to donate autologous blood for elective orthopaedic surgery were assigned to receive either leucoreduced (LR) or non-leucoreduced (N-LR) autologous blood based on their date of birth. Levels of cytokines in the autologous blood, values for C-reactive protein, complete blood count and body temperature of the patients, as well as adverse clinical events, were evaluated periodically. Results  Four hundred patients entered this study (LR group: 196, N-LR group: 204). The production of cytokines, excluding interleukin 1β (IL-1β), was suppressed for the LR group. However, for unknown reasons, IL-1β actually increased during storage for the LR group. There were no differences between the two groups in the length of hospital stay, postoperative C-reactive protein changes, leucocyte count, or body temperature, and no clinical problems associated with blood transfusion were observed in either group. Conclusion  Pre-storage leucoreduction for autologous blood may be effective to suppress cytokine accumulation. However, clinical benefits such as prevention of febrile non-haemolytic reactions could not be demonstrated.