Estimation of donor blood component wastage in the blood bank of a tertiary care hospital

Objective: To estimate the donor blood component wastage in the blood bank of a tertiary care hospital. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was done at Blood Bank Rehman Medical Institute, Peshawar from November 2021 to August 2023. However, since FFP and CP prepared in August 2023 will not expire until August 2024, their data cannot be fully assessed for wastage within this study period. Written consent was obtained before enrolling all donors. Depending on the need from various departments, the collected units of whole blood are fractionated into various components. The donors' names, ages, genders, contact information, and kinds of donors (voluntary or replacement) were recorded using a structured proforma. The donors who were selected had to meet a few requirements, including their age (≥ 18 years old), weight (≥ 50 g/dL), having hemoglobin levels of at least 12.5 g/dL, a hematocrit level (PCV) of at least 38%, and having normal blood pressure and a pulse rate between 50 and 100 beats per minute. Various reasons for the blood wastage were noted and recorded. Results: A total of 18397 blood donations were received. Out of which 12870 (69.95%) units were utilized as whole blood and 5527 (30.04%) were separated into different components. Among 12870 blood bags (whole blood), 661(5.13%) were wasted. 655(99.1%) wasted whole blood bags were of male donors and 6 (0.9%) blood bags were of female donors. 202 (30.56%) wasted blood bags were of blood group B+ TTI positivity accounting for the majority of whole blood bag wastage, making up 85.17% of cases. Among the total number of cases that were TTI positive, VDRL was detected in 20.78% of the blood bags, while HBsAg was found in 50.44% of them. The highest percentage of discarded components was platelets (7.99%), followed by RCC (4.84%), CP (3.23%), and FFP (2.11%). Conclusions: To ensure the proper utilization of blood, it is important to establish and adhere to appropriate blood transfusion guidelines. Collaborative efforts between hospital and blood bank personnel should also be made to reduce blood wastage. Keywords: Blood discarded, Blood components. Expired blood, Blood products.