Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 20, 2026

Continuous Manual Exchange Transfusion for Patients with Sickle Cell Disease: An Efficient Method to Avoid Iron Overload
Published on: March 14, 2017
Automated double red-cell phlebotomy for the treatment of erythrocytosis
Won Ho Choe1, Borae G Park, Kyoo-Hyung Lee
1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Eulji Medical Center, Eulji University School of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
Background:
Phlebotomy has been used as a primary method for the treatment of erythrocytosis. As a new phlebotomy method, we used an automated component collection system (Alyx, Fenwal), which has been used to obtain two units of leukoreduced red blood cells (RBCs) from donors. We evaluated the effectiveness of "double red-cell" phlebotomy (DRP) and compared it with conventional "whole-blood" phlebotomy (WBP).
Materials And Methods:
We have performed a total of 596 phlebotomies in 158 patients with erythrocytosis between June 2008 and November 2011. Forty patients underwent 84 DRPs and 118 patients underwent 512 WBPs. We removed 360-420 mL of RBCs in DRP and 360-600 mL of whole blood in WBP according to patient's total blood volume (TBV). Changes in hematologic parameters after phlebotomy were compared.
Results:
DRP removed more RBC volume (399.4 ± 20.2 mL vs. 235.9 ± 29.8 mL, P < 0.05) and lowered more hematocrit than WBP (6.9% ± 2.3% vs. 3.0% ± 1.7%, P < 0.05). Hematocrit reduction per kilogram of body weight was higher by DRP than WBP (0.106% ± 0.043% vs. 0.039% ± 0.025%, P < 0.05). Mild adverse events occurred in 32.5% (13/40) during DRP and 4.2% (5/118) during WBP.
Conclusion:
DRP lowered more RBC mass than WBP by selectively removing more RBC volume with less TBV. DRP can be an effective and safe technique for the treatment of erythrocytosis.
More Related Videos
11:59Detection of Residual Donor Erythroid Progenitor Cells after Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Patients with Hemoglobinopathies
Published on: September 6, 2017
08:23Characterization of Sickling During Controlled Automated Deoxygenation with Oxygen Gradient Ektacytometry
Published on: November 5, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Erythropoiesis
Disorders of Erythrocytes
Erythrocyte disorders can be broadly categorized into two main types: anemic and polycythemic conditions.
A low oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood due to the loss, lower production, or destruction of erythrocytes is termed anemia. Hemorrhagic anemia, for example, occurs when bleeding from an external wound or internal ulcer reduces erythrocyte counts.
On the other...
Lifecycle of Erythrocytes
The resident phagocytic macrophages deal with these damaged cells by engulfing them and separating their globin and heme groups.
Blood Transfusion
Blood Transfusion Overview
A blood transfusion is a medical procedure used to replace blood lost due to injury, surgery, or to treat conditions such as anemia or cancer. During a transfusion, donor blood is...
Blood Transfusion and Agglutination
History
The history of blood transfusion dates back to the 17th century, when early attempts were made in animals. In 1818 James Blundell, a British doctor, performed the first successful human blood transfusion. Later in 1900, Karl...