Usual Physicochemical Criteria Provide Insufficient Evidence That a Functional Hemoglobin Solution can be Used for Transfusions After Storage for 36 Months at +4°c

Abstract

Hemoglobin solutions will be of clinical interest only if they are easy to use, efficient and can be stored for long periods. While most studies are concerned with hemoprotein improvement (P₅₀ and plasmatic half-life) few deal with long term stability of liquid state solutions.

Physicochemical and physiological analyses were carried out on a 70 g/l ready-to-use hemoglobin solution after 1.5, 2.5 and 3 years storage at +4°c, away from light and without any protective additives.

The evaluation of hemoglobin stability by tests used in clinical biology shows few structural and functional alterations. However, after 1.5 year total transfusional exchanges carried out on rats cause rapid death, which seems to point to hemoprotein modifications undetected by biological techniques. It therefore appears that physicochemical tests do not provide adequate grounds for claiming that a hemoglobin solution kept for over a year and a half at +4°c can still be used effectively in transfusions.