Quality standards and thromboelastography in platelet pools at the Hospital de Especialidades Centro Medico Nacional Siglo XXI: Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social

Aims: Faced with uncertainty about why pooling platelet products for an adequate therapeutic dose is uncommon, the National Medical Center Siglo XXI assessed the quality of blood components from whole blood. To determine their effectiveness, platelets (PLTs) suspended in an additive solution were evaluated for functionality using thromboelastography (TEG). Methods: Six hundred whole blood samples were centrifuged and separated to obtain red blood cells (RBC), plasma (PL), and buffy coat (BC). The RBCs were immediately filtered in-line to obtain pre-storage leukodepleted red blood cell concentrate (LRBC). The BCs, after an overnight hold, were pooled with an additive solution. Subsequently, the BC pools were centrifuged and separated to obtain pre-storage leukodepleted platelet concentrate (LDPC). Results: Leukodepleted red blood cell concentrate unit volume was 253 ± 17.8 mL, compliance of 99.3%, resulting in hematocrit (HTC) of 54.8 ± 2.84% and hemoglobin values of 44.5 ± 5.69 g/Unit. Plasma units resulted in a volume of 236.25 ± 51.15 with 70.27 ± 6.95 g/L of total proteins and 145.30 ± 79.25% of Factor VIIIc. Leukodepleted platelet concentrate units yield 2.72 ± 0.41 × 1011 with 0.23 ± 0.26 × 106 residual leukocytes, with a volume of 342 ± 24.67 mL, pH 7 ± 0.08, and all TEG maximum amplitude (MA) values resulted between 75 and 80 mm. Conclusion: The findings confirm the quality and consistency of blood component collection and processing, with low variability and regulatory compliance. Thromboelastography analysis showed high coagulation capacity in pooled PLTs, highlighting the benefits of standardized pooling for transfusion medicine and healthcare sustainability in Latin America.