Abstract
Salvage of plasma in the waste blood from the surgical field after centrifugation and washing with a Haemonetics Cell Saver was investigated in 5 cases of surgically treated thoracic aneurysm. Haptoglobin administration and double filtration were performed in order to save available components and to remove toxic substances of plasma in the waste. Free-hemoglobin in the waste combined with haptoglobin given before filtration. After that larger molecular substances, such as haptoglobin-hemoglobin complex or microfibrin, were removed with a plasma-filter, and large amounts of saline were removed with an ultrafilter. This method had the advantage that 66% of albumin, 62% of immunoglobulin G and 55% of Immunoglobulin A in the waste could be saved, but its disadvantage was that a large amount of haptoglobin administration was required to remove free-hemoglobin in the waste, and protamin administration was required because of the large amount of heparin in the collected plasma.
