Platelet Products

This chapter discusses platelet products that include those manufactured from whole blood and those manufactured by apheresis. Platelets are an essential component of hemostasis and deficiencies in platelet number or function can result in bleeding and hemorrhage. Platelet transfusions are used for prophylaxis to prevent bleeding or as treatment of bleeding in patients who have thrombocytopenia or qualitative defects in their platelet function. Platelet transfusion is contraindicated in patients with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura or heparin-induced thrombocytopenia unless there is a severe or life-threatening hemorrhage. Platelet products are either derived from whole blood collections or collected through apheresis and since most apheresis collection methods create a leukoreduced product and therefore do not require further manufacturing and bacterial testing is simpler to perform in apheresis products. The process of obtaining platelets from whole blood involves drawing the blood into a bag containing an anti-coagulant-preservative solution and the whole blood undergoes a low speed centrifugation step after which the platelet-rich plasma is expressed and the red blood cells remain. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Author Beth H. Shaz Pathology