Abstract
Background - Ensuring transfusion safety remains a major challenge. Pathogen-reduction technologies (PRT), such as the INTERCEPT™ Blood System (IBS), use amotosalen (a psoralen) as intercalating agent in nucleic acids and ultraviolet A (UV-A) light to block pathogen replication, reducing the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections. While IBS is approved for platelet concentrate (PC) treatment, its clinical impact on platelet function remains debated. In November 2017, IBS was implemented across all French blood banks (Établissement Français du Sang, EFS) for PCs.
Materials and methods - We conducted a retrospective "before-after" study to evaluate the impact of PRT on platelet transfusion and clinical bleeding in cardiac surgery. The pre-PRT period was from January 2016 to June 2017, and the post-PRT period from January 2018 to June 2019. The study included adult patients who received PCs during or within two days after cardiac surgery in two teaching hospitals (Nancy and Reims). Patients with heart transplantation or requiring mechanical circulatory support were excluded.
Results - A total of 357 (Nancy) and 314 (Reims) patients were included, with no changes in anticoagulation, antiplatelet therapy, or surgical procedures. Platelet transfusion amount significantly decreased post-PRT (from 0.64 [0.54-0.81] to 0.57 [0.49-0.75] ×10¹¹/10 kg; p<0.01), while transfusion of other blood products remained unchanged. Postoperative outcomes, including mediastinal drainage, reoperation for bleeding, ICU stay, and overall hospital stay, were also unchanged.
Discussion - The implementation of PRT using IBS did not impair the hemostatic properties of transfused platelets during cardiac surgery. Platelet and other blood product use, as well as clinical outcomes, were similar before and after PRT introduction. IBS-treated PCs are thus comparable to standard PCs in managing bleeding in cardiac surgery.
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