Long-term plateletpheresis of a donor

A 25-year-old woman underwent plateletpheresis 101 times over a 33-month period. The equivalent of 5.8 to 7.5 units of platelet concentrate was removed during each pheresis. Two machine-related complications occurred, resulting in the loss of one unit of blood and 150 milliliters of plasma. Other complications included a mild anemia consistent with iron deficiency. The donor's platelet count decreased but remained in the normal range. There were no significant changes in the serum proteins or immunoglobulins. Serum hepatic enzymes became elevated and were consistent with a mild, subclinical hepatitis. These returned toward normal during continued pheresis.