Platelet preservation problems

During the past decade efforts to preserve platelets have indicated that storage at 4°C will not maintain functional integrity. The current anticoagulants are acceptable with the proposed modification of ACD solutions. Plastic equipment has been of value to prepare platelet concentrates rapidly. We need to have better plastic materials for the projected temperatures used for storage. While the Cr 51 platelet label has been of great value to evaluate methodology, further data are required to determine if isotope labeling of frozen platelets can be used to assess hemostasis. The two preservatives currently used for freezing need comparative studies to define acceptance in a national program. At the present time preservation studies continue to be done in an empiric fashion. Only when we understand platelet membrane functions more completely can we define the cryophysiology of this blood component.