Need to know how opinions on the use of filter RBCs stored for more than five days. Our stock phenotyped red cells is not filtered, so when necessary use phenotyped RBCs stored for more than five days for patients with sickle cell anemia, decided to wash red blood cells, performing the transfused with RBCs poor in leukocytes... How are you guys doing in these cases?

I think you need to filter every product that comes out of  your blood bank regardless of age, washing, etc.  This includes plasma, plts, cryo, and red cells.  Might depend on what country you are in . . .  but still.

FDA requires all products to be filtered before transfusion.

Are you referring to the use of leuko-redeuction filters or the use of regular blood filters which is of course required even if the units are leuko-reduced. Our entire supply is pre-storage leuko-reduced, by our supplier, which is the most effective way of doing it.

DogLover, I mean the leuko-redeuction filters, filters our service at the time of use.

I need to know if you filter after 5 days of storage is effective?

I used to work for a blood center reference lab and we were not be able to use rare units that we 'lost' this way. We made a very huge effort to go label freshly collected units every day with 'RARE - please filter' tags but if they were not caught before the 5 days, we could not have them leukoreduced.

We get all leukoreduced RBC units as well. I do not think you can use washing and leukoreduction filtering interchangeably.

We are 100% leukoreduced.