Microcirculatory hemodynamics after acute blood loss followed by fresh and banked blood transfusion.

Background: Red blood cell (RBC) conformational changes occur when blood is stored. This study was designed to be a preliminary evaluation to assess how these changes affect the microcirculation.

Methods: The rat cremaster muscle flap model was used to evaluate in vivo microcirculatory changes after withdrawal of 1 mL blood with subsequent administration of fresh blood (group I, n=6) and banked blood (group II, n=6).