FEASIBILITY AND SAFETY OF RED CELL COLLECTION BY APHERESIS TECHNOLOGY

We evaluated the feasibility and safety of red cell collection by apheresis technology. Red cells corresponding to 600ml of whole blood were collected with two types of apheresis machine (Trima and CCS). Healthy male donors whose (circulating) blood volume was 4, 100ml or more were entered into the trial. Mean time for the entire process was 32.4min. All procedures were completed without interruption, although one case of vaso-vagal reaction was noted during collection. No sign of serious side effects was reported after collection. Red cell counts and hemoglobin values of the donors recovered to the baseline 2-3 months after collection, although serum ferritin remained at 64.4% of predonation values after 6 months.It was concluded that red cell collection by apheresis technology equivalent to 600ml of whole blood is feasible and safe. However, a large scale clinical trial will be necessary to affirm the safety of this procedure.