Plateletapheresis with the New Baxter-Amicus Blood Cell Separator: An Italian Multicenter Study

Abstract

The efficiency and quality of platelet (PLT) collection were evaluated in a preliminary study using a new cell separator: Baxter-Amicus. The new fully automated blood cell separator combines centrifugation with elutration to obtain higher PLT efficiency with a lower white blood cell (WBC) contamination. We compared procedures performed with the first software version 2.13 and the more recent 2.37 version, then with and without plasma collection. Data from 262 plateletapheresis procedures were analyzed. The mean value of the PLT yield was 4.5±1.0x1011, collection efficiency: 69.4±12%; WBC contamination: 0.8±2.x106; and procedure time: 73± 19 minutes. The use of the new software vs the former permitted the collection of a higher number of platelets: 4.9± 1.1 vs. 4.5± 1.9 x1011 (=ns), with a lower WBC contamination: 0.6± 1.0 vs 0.7± 1.2 x106 (p=ns), in less time: 63± 10 vs 73± 19 minutes (p=0.002). The efficiency of platelet harvesting with simultaneous plasma collection was higher than the standard procedure: 73± 13 vs. 67± 10% (p=0.003).