[Technical aspects of extraction of platelet concentrates from dogs with an automated cell separator]

The results of this work point out that the cell separator AS 104 (Fresenius AG, Bad Homburg), which is developed to obtain platelet concentrates from human beings, can be used for dogs. The base adjustment of the cell separator for human beings (adjustment I) is useful, because of the high yield [platelet count (median): 1.75 x 10(11)] and quality [low leucocyte- (40/microliter) and erythro count (10 x 10(3)/microliter)]. In addition, there was no clear difference between the base adjustment (adjustment I) and an empirical modification (adjustment II). The platelet count of the donor dog decreased during the separation by approximately 140,000/microliter and reached the initial value after four days. Supplementary, the time course of the haematocrit and the concentrations of albumin, total protein and total calcium of the donor dog were measured. It should be mentioned that the concentrations of ionized calcium distinctly decreased during the separation. Synchronously, the concentrations of ionized calcium and of citrat reached the starting-counts 3-4 hours after the ending of the separation.