Meta-analysis of the randomized controlled trials of the hemostatic efficacy and capacity of pathogen-reduced platelets.

The present paper is about the clinical outcome of pathogen reduced platelets. The author is very experienced in the field of clinical studies and she is not affiliated to an industrial corporation. The sponsorship of recent publications trying to show the non-inferiority of pathogen reduced platelets has been a matter of debate. Here, a neutral meta-analysis of RCTs of the clinical outcome of pathogen reduced platelets is given and the article can be strongly recommended for the readership of NATAonline.

A stringent study design was chosen to identify RTCs meeting relevant eligibility criteria. Although a couple of studies on pathogen reduced platelets have been published in the past, only 5 studies could be identified to report on at least one of six haemostasis endpoints. A significant reduction in 1- and 24-hour corrected count increments after transfusion of pathogen reduced platelets as well as a significant increase in clinically significant bleeding complications was observed compared to the control arms. To overcome this problem, the number of the transfused platelet concentrates or the platelet dose per unit have to be increased resulting in an impact on the donor population.

– Rainer Moog