The aim of this study was to determine whether autologous fresh platelet co
ncentrate (PC) significantly improves haemostasis in cardiac reoperations c
ompared with autologous fresh whole blood (WB). Forty-eight patients who ha
d elective cardiac reoperations with a low-dose aprotinin priming regimen w
ere divided into two groups. The amount of allogeneic blood transfusion was
less in patients who were harvested 15 units of PC (Group PC; n = 24) befo
re cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) than patients who were harvested 400 ml of
WB (Group WB; n = 24), The amount of mediastinal drainage for 12 h in inten
sive care units were significantly reduced in Group PC compared with Group
WB (435 +/- 273 ml in Group PC versus 909 +/- 209 ml in Group WB; P < 0.001
). Platelet count and collagen-induced whole blood platelet aggregation inc
reased significantly higher in Group PC than Group WB after reinfusion. In
conclusion, autologous fresh PC improved haemostasis compared with autologo
us fresh whole blood in cardiac reoperations with a low-dose aprotinin prim
ing regimen.