Phosphatidylethanol clearance after packed red blood cell transfusion.

Objectives: Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is a long-term marker of alcohol consumption used clinically for evaluating abstinence in patients including transplant candidates. Packed red blood cell (pRBC) transfusion can introduce exogenous PEth to recipients, complicating interpretation. This study evaluated the kinetics and duration of PEth 16:0/18:1 positivity post-transfusion.