Von Willebrand factor multimer structure is neither acutely nor chronically affected by plateletpheresis.

Background: Plateletpheresis (PltPh) exposes the donor's blood to artificial surfaces and mechanical forces such as shear stress and centrifugation. In terms of the donor's safety and the quality of the apheresis platelet concentrate (APC), possible impairment of platelet function due to PltPh should be excluded. Von Willebrand factor (VWF) plays a pivotal role in platelet adhesion and aggregation.