Sickle trait testing of units - how do you do it?

[Giemsa]

For providing sickle trait negative units, which method do you use for testing?

How did you validate your test?

I'm having trouble getting sickle trait positive units from my blood supplier to do validation - any suggestions?

[reidhospbb]

We just use the screening system that we ormally use to screen patients. If you run a positive and negative control with the different segments and the controls everything is good. We put our sickle cell patients in the computer with an anti-sickle "antibody" and the units have to be typed "sickle negative" before the units can be crossmatched and transfused.

[Giemsa]

Thanks

[jwilb]

We give a segment to hematology where the Sickledex is used the same as for a patient.

[Townsend]

We also use a commercial kit, the same one that is used to screen patients for the trait. It is the Hemoglobin S sickle solubility reagent kit from Nova Century Scientific.

[Giemsa]

Thanks!