Summary
The use of leukodepleted blood components has grown dramatically in recent years. This growth has been fueled by the demand to minimize risks and optimize the quality of cellular blood components used in transfusion practice. Blood filtration, using high performance filters, is effective in removing significant numbers of donor leukocytes. However, filtration increases the cost of red cell transfusions by 25% and platelet transfusions by 17% over standard blood components. The important issue in determining the cost-effectiveness of leukodepletion is whether any added benefit attributable to a reduced leukocyte load is worth this increased cost.
Recent reports suggest that the use of leukodepleted blood components may be cost-effective in patients with hematologic malignancies who require long-term transfusion support. The precise clinical indications and cost-effectiveness in other patient groups have not been defined. If the preliminary results for hematologic indications are applicable to other diseases, it would appear that wider use of leukodepletion may be both inevitable and desirable.
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Forbes, J.M., Anderson, M.A., Gould, S.A. (1995). Cost-Effectiveness of Leukodepletion. In: Clinical Benefits of Leukodepleted Blood Products. Medical Intelligence Unit. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-26538-3_14
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-26538-3_14
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
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