Use of predeposited autologous blood plus intraoperative autotransfusion compared with use of predeposited autologous blood alone in radical retropubic prostatectomy.

The efficacy of combining preoperative autologous blood donation with the intraoperative use of an autotransfuser during radical retropubic prostatectomy was examined by retrospective analysis of the charts of 27 patients who underwent this procedure between February 1989 and August 1992. An intraoperative autotransfuser was combined with 2 units of predonated autologous blood in 14 patients (group 1), with 4 (29%) of the 14 requiring homologous blood. In group 2, 5 (62%) of 8 patients required homologous blood. For the remaining 5 patients (group 3), no autologous blood was available, so all received homologous blood transfusion. Preliminary data suggest that ideally, patients scheduled for radical prostatectomy should attempt to store at least 2 units of autologous blood and have an autotransfuser available during surgery.