The Polyvalent Day Hospital: Is there an excessive request of packed leucocyte-depleted red cells?

Resumo

Background: The Polyvalent Day Hospital (PDH) allows the treatment of oncological diseases and chronic anemias on an outpatient basis, significantly improving the quality of life of these patients [1,2]. The lack of guidelines leads to variable transfusion practices between clinicians. Objective: The main aim of this study is to improve the management of resources used in the preparation of a transfusion unit. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted regarding the number of packed leucocyte-depleted red cells, prepared for PDH and the number of administered red cells between 2018 and 2022. All data analysis were performed with Microsoft Excel 365, and the ratio between Prepared Units (PU) and Transfused Units (TU) were calculated. Results: Between 2018 and 2022, a total of 18.832 leucocyte-depleted red cells were prepared in the Imunohemotherapy service. Of these, 13.332 red cells were administered which results in a ratio of 1.41. Conclusion: According to this study, the number of requested leucocyte-depleted red cells was higher than the number of administered units. In a time when red cells reserves are in short supply, an “exaggerated” request by clinicians leads not only to an increase of work in the Imunohemotherapy service but also to an unnecessary cost of reagents. Despite the insufficiency of criterion, that leads to variable transfusion practices between clinicians, it is of paramount importance that the Imuno-Hemoterapy service conducts a reevaluation of the services provided to PDH.