Effects of leukoreduction on storage lesions in whole blood and blood components of dogs

Background: Leukoreduction is a routine procedure in human transfusion medicine but is uncommon in veterinary.

Objectives: To evaluate the effect of leukoreduction on the quality of canine whole blood (WB) and blood products during storage.

Animals: Ten canine blood donors.

Methods: This is a case series study. An amount of 450 mL of blood was collected from each dog. Five WB and 5 packed red blood cells (pRBC) bags were divided into 2 units each: leukoreduced (LR) and non-leukoreduced (nLR). RBC count, erythrocytes' mean osmotic fragility (MOF), 2,3-diphosphoglycerate (2,3-DPG), adenosine triphosphate (ATP), percentage of hemolysis, potassium (K), lactate, glucose, and cytokines were measured weekly from day of donation (T0) to day 35 (T35); pH, coagulation times, and clotting factors were evaluated at T0 and T35 from WB and in fresh frozen plasma after 1 year of storage.

Results: Leukoreduction showed positive effects on lactate (T35: LR WB 14.42 mmol/L SD 2.71, nLR WB 22.42 mmol/L SD 1.86, LR pRBC 20.88 mmol/L SD 2.65, nLR pRBC 36.81 mmol/L SD 2.34; P < .0001), pH (T35: LR WB 6.88 SD 0.16, nLR WB 6.69 SD 0.20, P = .02; LR pRBC 6.57 SD 0.23, nLR pRBC 6.22 SD 0.11; P < .001), and K (LR pRBC 4.08 mmol/L SD 0.88, nLR pRBC 5.48 mmol/L SD 0.90; P < .001). Increasing values of IL8 were observed in nLR units during storage (T0: 4167 ± 11 888 pg/mL; T35: 6367 ± 11 612 pg/mL).

Conclusion and clinical importance: LR blood units are recommended to critically ill dogs with marked inflammatory conditions.