Effect of double dose plateletpheresis on target yield and donor platelet recovery

The demand for apheresis platelets has increased in the recent past and the shrinking donor pool has shifted the trend to collection of double-dose or higher yield of platelets.

The present study aimed to determine the effect of double-dose plateletpheresis on the target yield and donor platelet recovery.

The study was conducted on 100 healthy plateletpheresis donors, 50 of whom were in the study group, which underwent double-dose plateletpheresis (DDP), and 50 of whom were in the control group for single-donor plateletpheresis. Pre- and post-procedure samples of donors were subjected to a complete blood count. The DDP product was sampled for platelet yield and then split into two parts. Platelet yield, collection efficiency, collection rate, recruitment factor and donor platelet loss were calculated.

The mean platelet yield in the SDP was 4.09 ± 1.15 × 10¹¹ and in the DDP, 5.93 ± 1.04 × 10¹¹. There was a significant correlation between the pre-donation platelet count and platelet yield. The total of platelets processed for the SDP were 5.42 ± 1.08 × 10¹¹ and for the DDP, 7.94 ± 0.77 × 10¹¹. The collection efficiency was 71.93 ± 25.14% in the SDP and 72.94 ± 16.28% in the DDP, while the collection rates were 0.78 × 10¹¹ and 0.94 × 10¹¹ per minute, respectively. The average recruitment factor observed was 0.98 in the SDP, while it was 0.99 in the DDP. The mean platelet loss observed in the SDP was 35.55 ± 8.53% and in the DDP, 37.76 ± 8.65%.

The double-dose plateletpheresis supplements the platelet inventory in developing countries where the apheresis donor pool is limited. It is prudent to ensure stringent donor selection criteria for donors donating high-yield platelet products, thus enhancing donor safety and retention.