CHARACTERISTICS OF WHITE CELL-REDUCED RED-CELLS STORED IN TRI-(2-ETHYLHEXYL)TRIMELLITATE PLASTIC

Background: Standard blood storage containers contain extractable plas ticizers that accumulate in blood during storage and are an unintended transfusion product. However, extractable plasticizers have a protect ive effect on the red cell membrane and improve red cell storage varia bles. Prestorage white cell reduction also improves selected red cell storage variables. Study Design and Methods: The study evaluated wheth er the beneficial effect of prestorage white cell reduction would offs et the negative effect of the absence of extractable plasticizer in re d cells stored in AS-3 for 42 days at 4 degrees C. Filtered red cells stored in polyvinylchroride containers with the nonextracting plastici zer, tri-(2-ethylhexyl)trimellitate (TEHTM), were compared to unfilter ed red cells stored in polyvinylchloride containers with the extractab le plasticizer di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP). Results: Poststorage supernatant potassium and red cell osmotic fragility were significant ly higher in white cell-reduced TEHTM units than in unfiltered DEHP un its. The mean 24-hour recovery of the filtered TEHTM red cells was sig nificantly lower than that of the unfiltered DEHP red cells (69.1 +/- 7.4% vs. 77.1 +/- 5.1%, p<0.05, n = 8). Conclusion: These data demonst rate that white cell reduction before 42-day storage in TEHTM containe rs with currently approved preservatives does not yield an acceptable red cell component.