What size tubes do you use?

Is the red cell suspension made from whole blood or packed cells?

Do you leave the plasma on the red cells in one tube during and storage?

 

Thanks!

 

6 ml

packed cells

Yes

10
packed
yes

We use 6 ml K3 EDTA tubes and routinely use the packed cells for the suspension. We don't pour off the plasma for storage.

Because of the nature of our work, we usually ask for 2 x 7.5mL tubes (which we occasionally receive, if we are lucky!).

We make our own suspensions (as does our grouping automation) from packed cells.

The automation does the grouping on a sample with the plasma still in situ, but once we have a group, we remove the plasma.

4mL EDTA; we remove the plasma; suspension from packed cells

Do you go in through the plasma with an automated pipette or a small plastic pipette to collect your red cells ?

Who are you asking amym1586, or are you asking everyone?

We use the disposable plastic ones.

54 minutes ago, Malcolm Needs said:

Who are you asking amym1586, or are you asking everyone?

Anyone who will listen 

We are currently taking whole blood out to make our cell suspension (still doing manual forwards and reverse in tubes)

Then spinning down the sample.

I want to get them out of that habit and using the packed cells to make our suspensions and hopefully get them to use gel for the forwards and reverses.

But we have skinny tubes and big fat pipettes making it impossible to get packed cells without spilling plasma. And I don't know how it'll go if I want special smaller pipettes for bloodbank. Maybe I can order bigger pink tops   

We have skinny tubes too. It just takes practice. Drop your plasma for screen and reverse, and crossmatches if you want. Squeeze the pipette and insert into the tube while releasing the bulb so you pull up enough plasma to not spill any. Go nab some of the packed cells, pull the pipette out and squeeze out the cells, but not the plasma. Put the plasma back in the tube immediately and you're good to go!

What size tubes do you use?   6 ML 13MM

Is the red cell suspension made from whole blood or packed cells?   PACK CELLS

Do you leave the plasma on the red cells in one tube during and storage?   SAME TUBE DURING STORAGE

6 mL

Mostly packed cells but not rigid about that ... though we always use whole blood for fetal bleed screens

Same tube during storage

Cardinal Health has some nice pipettes (CH5214-18) specifically for Blood Bank that are graduated 0.5 mL to 2.0 mL with smaller tips and consistent drop size. Our entire lab uses them for all types of tubes and secondary sample containers for instruments. Teristella's sampling technique works great.

 

Edited January 11, 20169 yr by AMcCord
Additional information

6ml

packed

yes

 

4mL EDTA, 12x75mm

Used BioHit automated pipettor (go through plasma to aspirate rbcs after dispensing plasma into antibody screen and reverse grouping, xmatching)

Packed RBCs

Yes

2 tubes, a 3 ml edta and a 7ml edta. Use the small one for cells and spin the big one for the plasma.

We use the pink top K3 EDTA tubes, spin down, and separate off the plasma into a separate tube in case additional crossmatches are ordered on the specimen.  We wash our packed cells to make the suspension for testing.

6 ml, packed, and yes.  I am NOT a fan of separating plasma, I think it's a cause of error.