The Iranian Blood Transfusion, Donor Safety Program: Effect of Long-term Plasmapheresis on Plasma Proteins.

Background: Plasmapheresis is a well-recognised method for harvesting plasma. It was introduced in the 1950s and is currently employed worldwide. This method has been in use in Iran since 1979. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of donor safety program used at the Iranian Blood Transfusion Organization. Methods: A comparison is made of the protein concentrations between the first-time and long-term plasmapheresis donors, using protein gel electrophoresis. The effect of vaccination for collection of hyper-immune plasma was also studied. Results/Conclusion: Our data comprising a 10-year evaluation of the current programmes, demonstrates no significant difference between the groups studied. This indicates safety of the plasmapheresis procedures in plasma procurement.