Background: To reduce the production costs of single-donor platelets (SDPs), a study was conducted to investigate whether plasma collected as a by-product of plateletpheresis satisfies the quality requirements for FFP without impairing the quality of the SDP component.
Study design and methods: Ninety-two donors with platelet (PLT) counts <270 x 10(9) per L underwent plateletpheresis using an automated cell separator (Spectra Apheresis System with the Leukoreduction System [LRS], Gambro BCT, Lakewood, CO). The machine was programmed to collect 3 x 10(11) PLTs in 250 mL of plasma with an additional unit of 350 mL of plasma or 3 x 10(11) PLTs in 250 mL of plasma without additional plasma in 10 procedures. FV and FVIII and residual RBCs, WBCs, and PLTs in the plasma were measured for quality control.
Results: FV was 0.87 +/- 0.18 IU per mL, and FVIII was 1.32 +/- 0.48 IU per mL in the plasma components (n = 41). The recovery was 94.1 +/- 5.5 percent for FV and 102.2 +/- 9.5 percent for FVIII when compared with the donors' predonation values. Residual cells were 0.002 +/- 0.009 x 10(9) RBCs per L (n = 30), 12 +/- 6 x 10(9) PLTs per L (n = 30), and 0.32 +/- 0.37 x 10(6) WBCs per L (n = 92).
Conclusions: Using the automated cell separator and special software, it is possible to collect plasma as a by-product of plateletpheresis that meets the properties requested for FFP without impairing the quality of the SDP components. The content of clotting factors is within the requested range for FFP. Residual cell counts are within all European and U.S. specifications for FFP, and the WBC content even satisfies the criteria for WBC-reduced blood components. The collection of FFP as a by-product does not cause any additional costs and thus helps to reduce the costs in preparing blood components.