Pediatric Versus Adult Shear‐Induced Hemolysis—Are Age‐Related Blood Properties the Main Cause for Differences?

Within the examined shear range, pediatric RBCs did not display increased sensitivity to mechanical stress compared to adult RBCs. These results suggest that increased hemolysis in pediatric MCS is more likely related to device design and device operating conditions than to an intrinsically higher susceptibility of pediatric blood. Due to the low availability of pediatric blood, adult blood appears suitable for initial hemolysis testing in pediatric device development, although larger pediatric cohorts will be necessary to refine hemolysis prediction models and to investigate additional blood damage mechanisms.