ABSTRACT
These are pooled collections from 5 or 6 units of blood, and contain an equivalent volume of plasma as 1 unit of FFP. They cannot be frozen or pasteurized, and rapidly lose their function. The average shelf-life of these platelets is 5 days. They have the same risks as a unit of red cell concentrates in terms of infections, transfusion reactions, and anaphylaxis. Platelet concentrates are usually provided only after advice from the haematologist, and may have to be transported from a regional transfusion centre. This means that there may be a considerable delay in getting them into the operating room. They have to be given through a non-filtered giving set because the platelets often aggregate during storage and these are too large to pass through a filter. For the patient undergoing surgery, platelet transfusion is indicated when the platelet count decreases to 50000 or less in the presence of bleeding. For a patient who is otherwise well and not undergoing surgery, values as low as 10000 have been tolerated. Developments in the measurement of platelet function, as yet unavailable routinely, will enable a more rational administration of this scarce resource in the future.
