Association of Platelet Apheresis with Hematological and Electrolyte Abnormalities in Donors: A Pre- and Post-Donation Study

Objectives: To assess the association of platelet pheresis with occurrence of abnormalities in hematological parameters and serum electrolyte homeostasis before and after donation. Study Design and Setting: Prospective cohort study. Department of Pathology, PNS Shifa, Karachi (Jan-Dec 2024). METHODOLOGY: A total of 126 platelet donors were studied. Patients aged 18–60 years who had a normal CBC, a platelet count of =200,000/µL and a body weight of at least 50kg were included. Individuals with chronic illness history, medication affecting hematological parameters, recent infection, prior platelet donations or surgery within the last 6 months were excluded. Pre-donation CBC and serum electrolytes were measured and then repeated immediate post-donation and then at one-week and one-month. The sample was calculated by WHO calculator with 5% significance ( ) and 95% power of the test (1- ) with standard deviation ( ) of 0.385, variance ( 2) of 0.148225, a mean serum calcium level prior to platelet pheresis of 9.91 mg/dL and a post-plateletpheresis of 9.75 mg/dL. Results: The median-age at donation was 32.0 (IQR: 10.0) years with 122 (98.6%) patients being male and 19 (15.1%) had a history of previous donations. Haemoglobin (p=0.023), hematocrit (p<0.001), platelet count (p<0.001), serum calcium (p<0.001) and magnesium (p=0.003) were significantly lower in patients immediately after plateletpheresis. At 1-week post-donation, only platelet count (p<0.001) was below baseline levels. One month from the plateletpheresis procedure, all the haematological and electrolyte levels returned to baseline. Conclusion: Plateletpheresis is a safe procedure with any haematological or electrolyte disturbance post-procedure returning to normal within one week