Acute lung injury after ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm repair: The effect of excluding donations from females from the production of fresh frozen plasma

OBJECTIVES:Transfusion-related acute lung injury may contribute to the development of acute lung injury in the critically ill, due to plasma from female donors containing antileukocyte antibodies. In July 2003, the U.K. National Blood Service stopped using female donor plasma for the production of fresh frozen plasma. Patients undergoing repair of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm receive large amounts of fresh frozen plasma and often develop acute lung injury. We investigated whether the change to male fresh frozen plasma was associated with a change in the frequency of acute lung injury in these patients. DESIGN:A retrospective, before and after, observational, single-center study. SETTING:Tertiary care center and a regional blood center. PATIENTS:The study included 211 patients undergoing open repair of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm between 1998 and 2006. INTERVENTIONS:None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS:Primary outcome was the development of acute lung injury in the first 6 hrs after surgery. Secondary outcomes were significant hypoxia (Pao2/Fio2 ratio