RHEOLOGICAL PROPERTIES AND FUNCTION OF BLOOD-CELLS IN STORED BANK BLOOD AND SALVAGED BLOOD

The technique involving filtration of diluted blood enables the separa te analysis of the flow properties of different cell subpopulations. T his study was designed to assess the changes occurring in the now prop erties and function of blood cells in stored bank blood and salvaged b lood compared to patient blood in a given clinical situation. We measu red hydrogen peroxide production by neutrophils and the filterability, through 5 mu m Nucleopore filters, of isolated red blood cells and of diluted blood. Samples were obtained from patients undergoing aortic surgery and blood intended for transfusion: either salvaged during sur gery or stored bank blood. Both salvaged and bank: blood were much les s filterable than patient blood, with reduced deformability of both re d and white blood cells. However, salvaged blood contained highly acti vated neutrophils with a prolonged transit time of the 'fast-flowing' cells in the analysis compared to bank blood. Bank blood contained sig nificantly more particles which acted as pore-blockers. Cells in bank and salvaged blood therefore have-markedly abnormal now and biochemica l properties compared to patient blood.