Total potential frequency of autologous blood transfusion in Olmsted County, MN

To calculate the total "potential" frequency of preoperatively donated autologous erythrocyte (red blood cell or RBC) units in the entire population of patients who received transfusions in a specific US county, in a hypothetical situation in which all patients who received transfusions for elective surgical procedures (and were considered medically eligible for preoperative autologous blood donation [PABD]) predeposited a number of autologous RBCs appropriate for their procedure.

All Olmsted County residents who received RBC transfusions during 1991 and 1992 were retrospectively assessed for eligibility for PABD. Patients who were eligible to donate blood were assigned a number of autologous RBC predeposits appropriate for their scheduled procedure. Calculated total potential frequency figures for PABD were compared statistically on the basis of age, gender, and surgical service.

Study patients were eligible for PABD in 459 of 1,038 surgical admissions. The percentage eligibility for PABD was similar across age and gender patient groups but differed across admitting surgical services. Reasons for ineligibility for PABD differed across the patient categories studied. Under the aforementioned assumption, theoretically 786 of the 8,137 RBC units transfused to all study patients (9.7%) could have been provided by PABD.

From the standpoint of an entire community population, the total potential effect of PABD on the blood supply can amount to a maximum of 9.7% of all transfused units of RBCs, an upper limit that is similar across age and gender patient groups but differs across transfusing surgical services.