BLOOD-LOSS IN ELDERLY INDIVIDUALS AND EFF ECTS ON RHEOLOGICAL PARAMETERS AND CARDIOVASCULAR CAPACITY

Objective: The goal of the study was to test the consequences of a sin gle hypovolaemic autologous blood donation upon rheology and ergometri cally determined cardiac performance in clinically healthy elderly blo od donors. Design: Prospective controlled observation study Setting: C enter for blood donation of a university hospital. Participants: 54 cl inically healthy routine blood donors, from which 37 were actually don ating and 17 served as control. Interventions: Treadmill exercise test ing was performed on the day before and the day after blood donation, venous blood was withdrawn directly before and after blood donation, F ollowing parameters were evaluated: haematocrit, haemoglobin, mean cor puscular volume, number of erythrocytes, plasma fibrinogen, serum prot eins, plasma viscosity. Results: All probands (donors and controls) sh owed statistically significant improvements of the cardiac performance . The extent of improvement between the two groups was not significant ly different. Blood donors showed a significant decrease in haematocri t and plasma viscosity. Conclusions: A moderate loss of blood has no m easurable negative effect on the cardiac situation of elderly probands . Thus, autologous or allogeneic blood donation can partially be recom mended mended for elderly patients, too.