Tehran University Medical Journal

Preoperative autologous blood donation is commonly used to reduce exposure to homologous blood transfusions among patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of autologous transfusion on patients' hematocryte value, intra and postoperative blood loss, hospitalization time, the development of infective complications and other factors.

Materials and Methods: Between June 2001 to April 2002, 208 patients were underwent cardiac surgery in cardiac surgery ward in Imam Khomeini Medical Center. One or more blood units donate from 104 Patients before cardiopulmonary bypass and heparin injection, and transfused to them after CPB and Protamin injection (autologous Group, group 1). 104 patients underwent cardiac surgery routinely (control group, group 2).
Results: Mean of age was 55.9±8.6 in group 1 and 56.6±9.3 in group 2 (P=NS). 73 male and 31 females were in group 1 and 79 males and 25 females were in group 2 (P=NS). Smoking, familial history, hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, renal failure, hypertension, stroke, and history of myocardial infarction was similar in two groups.
Severity of angina, urgency operation, number vessels disease, duration of cardiopulmonary bypass, duration of aortic cross clamp time, use of internal thoracic artery graft, and number of grafts was similar in both groups. Mean of bleeding post operation was 548 cc in group 1 and 803 cc in-group 2 (P=0.003). Bleeding that need to operation was 1.8% in group 1 and 8.6% in group 2 (P=0.002). Wound infection, mediastinitis, renal failure, ventilatory prolonged, stroke, need to Intra-aortic Balloon Pump (IABP), intraoperative bleeding, and hospital stay was similar in both groups. Mean of extubationt time was 10.2 hours in group 1 and 14.8 hours in group 2 (P=0.001).
Conclusion: Preoperative and intra-operative donations are safe and continue to contribute uniquely to blood conservation, providing important options in comprehensive blood conservation programs in current pediatric open-heart surgery.

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE AR-SA MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Background: The prevalence of Rh alloimmunization has decreased following the use of anti-D immunoglobulin. With serial amniocentesis, Doppler sonography of the middle cerebral artery and treatment of anemia with intrauterine blood transfusion, perinatal mortality has declined. However, Rh alloimmunization in twin pregnancies poses a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge.
Case report: We are reporting, for the first time in Iran, the successful treatment of severe Rh alloimmunization in a dichorionic- diamnionic twin pregnancy leading to the live births of both neonates. Before treatment, the fetal hemoglobin levels were 3.1g/dL and 3.9g/dL, with ascites in both fetuses. The fetuses were treated with several IUTs.
Results: After treatment, the neonates were delivered, weighing 2200 and 2300g, with good Apgar scores, at a gestational age of 34 weeks.
Conclusion: 10% of population in Iran is Rh-negative, although Prophylaxis for Rh alloimmunization is universal, as other part of the world it cannot irrigated. For the best management of these cases, we need a well-equipped referral center.

Blood transfusion is commonly implemented to manage life and health-threatening conditions on a rapid and short-term basis. Over the years, ongoing technical advances have dramatically improved transfusion medicine to provide more safety and effectiveness. However, transfusion is still complicated with different adverse events that mainly induced by the presence of allogeneic leukocytes in the blood products. Several lines of evidence have shown that leukocytes in blood components are involved in the induction of febrile nonhemolytic transfusion reactions (FNHTRs), HLA alloimmunization and platelet refractoriness as well as the increased risk of the infectious diseases transmitted by leukotropic viruses including cytomegalovirus (CMV), human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV)-I/II and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). During current decades, introducing various leuko-reduction techniques have shown to be associated with less transfusion related adverse events and improved clinical outcomes. The lower incidence and severity of febrile transfusion reactions; reduced risk of transfusion related transmission of CMV or other leukocyte-associated infections, lowered incidence of alloimmune platelet refractoriness in addition to reducing risk of mortality and morbidity in patients are considered as clinical benefits of leuko-reduced products. Currently, by the use of 3^rd and 4^th generation of filters, the highest levels of leukoreduction in blood components have been achieved. Filtration techniques have also the advantages of being performed shortly after preparation of components (pre-storage) or post-storage even at the patient’s bedside. However, it seems that pre-storage depletion of leukocytes provides better protection than post-storage techniques due to the elimination of leukocyte-derived cytokines effects which are increasingly released during storage. Particularly in platelet products, the earlier depletion of leukocyte also favors less platelet-induced leukocyte activation which may be triggered by the interaction between either activated platelets or their released chemokines and residual leukocytes during storage. Despite the benefits attributed to leukoreduction of blood components, the global use of leukoreduced products is commonly hampered by its high cost especially in developing countries in which leukoreduction of blood components is usually limited to some patients with special conditions. In this review, after briefly introducing of some transfusion adverse events that are attributed to allogeneic leukocytes existed in blood products, the effects of leukoreduction process in the attenuation of these events will be discussed.