Genesis Now Using 100 Percent Leuko-Reduced Blood

DAVENPORT, Iowa -- In a move that will make blood transfusions safer for patients, Genesis Medical Center, Davenport has begun using only leuko-reduced blood products.

Leukoreduction removes white blood cells, called leukocytes, from blood. White blood cells have been associated with the transmission of certain infectious diseases and the development of immune reactions in transfusion recipients.

Genesis Medical Center’s DeWitt and Illini campuses already were using leuko-reduced blood for transfusions. With GMC-Davenport now doing the same, Genesis Health System becomes the only health system in the Quad Cities to use 100 percent leuko-reduced red blood cells.

“Leuko-reduced blood is a safer blood product for the patient because there are fewer transfusion reactions and reduced exposure to white blood cell-associated pathogens that can be the byproduct of the blood storage process,” said Rob Nelson, M.D., Vice President of Clinical Services at GMC, Davenport. “Universal leuko-reduced blood is slowly becoming the standard of care across the nation.”

There are three kinds of cells in the blood – red blood cells that carry oxygen, platelets that prompt clotting when needed, and white blood cells that fight off infections. Ironically, when white blood cells or leukocytes are transfused in whole blood, they can cause adverse reactions, such as fever and chills.

Now, Genesis’ standard inventory will consist only of red blood cells that have undergone a leukodepletion process by the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center, the blood supplier to Genesis.

Leuko-reduced blood requires the removal of white blood cells by filtration, which the center typically does within 24 hours of donation. Genesis hospitals receive about 9,300 units of blood each year.

White blood cells can trigger transfusion reactions, including fever, chills and allergies to subsequent transfusions. They also carry viruses, such as cytomegalovirus, that can infect the transfusion recipient. Although the viruses may not make healthy people ill, they can be harmful to those with suppressed immune systems, such as cancer patients.
 
Last year, GMC-Davenport transfused 7,333 total units of blood, and of these, 45 percent already were leuko-reduced by physician order. “Before, physicians had to specifically ask for leuko-reduced blood cells when ordering a transfusion of red blood cells,” Dr. Nelson said. “Now, the process will be automatic.”

That new process will be a safeguard for those patients seeing multiple physicians who may not always be informed of their need for leuko-reduced blood, such as an unconscious leukemia patient who presents to the emergency room.

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