A national survey of transfusion-related acute lung injury risk reduction policies for platelets and plasma in the United States.
BACKGROUND
Little information exists on the specific transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) risk reduction practices used by multiple blood collecting institutions in the United States.


METHODS
An AABB-appointed TRALI working group designed a set of questions about TRALI risk reduction for platelets (PLTs) and plasma. AABB member institutions were asked to respond via an Internet-based survey during a 3-week period in August through September 2009.


RESULTS
Valid responses were received from 47 US blood centers (accounting for 1.57 million apheresis PLT units and 3.15 million whole blood-derived transfusable plasma units) and 56 hospital blood collectors. Among the blood centers, 87 and 98% had initiated some PLT and plasma risk reduction, respectively. HLA antibody testing of plateletpheresis donors was performed by 20 (43%) blood centers. There was substantial variation in the number of pregnancies (from one to more than four) that triggered testing and most centers did not screen based on a transfusion history. Almost all centers had policies to redirect HLA antibody-positive donors to whole blood donation and to potentially retest HLA antibody-negative donors. There were no blood centers performing HNA antibody testing. Sex-based risk reduction policies for plasma included all male, or predominantly male, and never-pregnant females; these varied by blood center, blood group, and method of plasma collection. A majority of centers indicated increased production of plasma frozen within 24 hours after phlebotomy.


CONCLUSIONS
Almost 3 years after the publication of the initial AABB bulletin on this issue, TRALI risk reduction strategies are commonly employed at most US blood centers. However, procedures are not uniform.
Kleinman
Steven
S
AABB, Bethesda, Maryland, USA. skleinman@shaw.ca
Grossman
Brenda
B
Kopko
Patricia
P
D055371:Acute Lung Injury / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001782:Blood Donors; D046148:Donor Selection; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D010949:Plasma; D017713:Platelet Transfusion / Q000009:adverse effects*; D010983:Plateletpheresis; D011247:Pregnancy; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States
D007518:Isoantibodies