Plasmapheresis as a Form of Blood Donation

Plasmapheresis has become a routine form of blood donation and is now an important source of plasma procurement. Procedures and equipment for plasmapheresis may differ but the basic act of bleeding the donor and safely returning the packed red cells remains the same. Care must be taken to avoid exposure of the donor to the risks of blood transfusion and to the iron depletion hazard of blood withdrawal. The donor should meet standard donor requirements, have a normal serum protein level and be able to maintain good nutrition. Plasma withdrawals of 1,000 ml. weekly are feasible but serum protein levels must be determined often enough to detect depletion. A careful system of blood and donor identification must be used and it is well to avoid handling potentially incompatible bloods simultaneously. The packed red cells should be returned to the donor within the shortest possible time after donation to avoid the risks of blood storage especially misidentifica‐tion, bacterial proliferation, and shortened survival of the red cells.