Patient Blood Management in pediatric and adolescent bone marrow donors: results from an Italian survey.

Background: Current national and international guidelines (Italian Bone Marrow Donor Registry [IBMDR], World Marrow Donor Association [WMDA] standards) provide an indication for preoperative autologous blood donation (PAD) only in adult family and volunteer non-family donors in anticipation of bone marrow (BM) hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) donation to avoid the use of homologous transfusions. In addition, there is no clear guidance from the relevant scientific societies regarding pediatric and adolescent donors.

Material And Methods: To assess the actual use of PAD in pediatric (up to 14 years) and adolescent (aged 15-18 years) family donors in relation to BM HSC donation in the five years 2017-2021, a specific online questionnaire was administered to blood establishments and clinical units of pediatric transplantation programs responsible for BM HSC collection.

The Italian registry of therapeutic apheresis in SISTRA: Year of activity 2023.

The Italian Registry of Therapeutic Apheresis (IRTA) collects clinical data on patients undergoing therapeutic apheresis procedures throughout the national territory, with the main objective of improving the quality and safety of the care provided to the patient. Given the importance of centralizing the collection and analysis of information on therapeutic apheresis, the National Blood Center (NBC), at the request of the Italian Scientific Society of Hemapheresis and Cellular Manipulation (SIdEM), has included IRTA in the Information System of Transfusion Services (SISTRA), which is the information system of the Ministry of Health for the exchange of data on blood and its derivatives between the Italian Regions and the NBC. This manuscript reports IRTA activity data for 2023 maintaining the general approach introduced in previous manuscripts to facilitate comparison with already published activity data (2020-2022).

Securing commitment and control for the supply of plasma derivatives for public health systems. I: A short review of the global landscape.

The social market economies of the Western world considered the provision of plasma derivatives produced from publicly owned blood services as a legitimate state commitment and, until the last decades of the 20th century, many of the relevant jurisdictions maintained state-supported fractionation plants to convert publicly collected plasma into products for the public health system. This situation started to change in the 1990s, because of several converging factors, and currently, publicly owned/subsidized, not-for-profit fractionation activity has shrunk to a handful of players. However, the collection of plasma from publicly owned blood services has continued and recent developments have increased the interest of state authorities globally to increase the volume of plasma collected to increase the level of strategic independence in the supply of crucial plasma-derived medicines from commercial market pressures, particularly the global for-profit fractionation sector with its dominance of source plasma from paid donors in the United States.

Securing commitment and control for the supply of plasma derivatives for public health systems. II: A survey of national pathways.

Background And Objectives: Pressures on the supply of plasma-derived medicinal products (PDMPs) have led to the efforts to increase the level of plasma collected by public health authorities.

Materials And Methods: Public blood collectors were assessed regarding their routes towards domestically sourced plasma and PDMPs.

Results: The collectors' operations were specified and analysed.

The use of predictive modelling to determine the likelihood of donor return during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Artificial intelligence (AI) uses sophisticated algorithms to "learn" from large volumes of data. This could be used to optimise recruitment of blood donors through predictive modelling of future blood supply, based on previous donation and transfusion demand. We sought to assess utilisation of predictive modelling and AI blood establishments (BE) and conducted predictive modelling to illustrate its use.

Platelet rich plasma for facial rejuvenation: an overview of systematic reviews.

Background: Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) as a non-surgical therapy for facial rejuvenation is increasingly adopted. This article aims to review the literature and critically appraise the available evidence regarding the efficacy and safety of PRP for facial rejuvenation.

Material And Methods: An overview of systematic reviews (SRs) of PRP use for facial rejuvenation.

A survey on the implementation of Patient Blood Management programs in Italy.

Background: Since 2012, in line with the World Health Organization (WHO) resolution WHA63.12 of 05/21/2010, the Italian National Blood Center has been promoting patient blood management (PBM). In order to verify the level of PBM implementation nationwide, we submitted a survey to all healthcare providers.

Nirmatrelvir/ritonavir for COVID-19: an overview of systematic reviews.

Objectives: A reappraisal of the validity of the conclusions of systematic reviews (SRs) related to nirmatrelvir/ritonavir for the treatment of COVID-19.

Methods: An overview of SRs (umbrella review). The methodological quality of the SRs was assessed using the AMSTAR 2 checklist; quality of the evidence from the trials included in each SR was appraised following the GRADE approach.

The Italian registry of therapeutic apheresis in SISTRA: Year of activity 2022.

Therapeutic apheresis refers to a group of extracorporeal blood processing procedures used in the treatment of a variety of systemic diseases. These complex procedures are burdened by adverse reactions related to both procedures and underlying medical conditions. Given the importance of centralizing the collection and the analysis of information on therapeutic apheresis, the Italian National Blood Center (NBC), at the request of the Italian Scientific Society of Hemapheresis and Cell Manipulation (SIdEM), implemented the Italian Registry of Therapeutic Apheresis (IRTA) including it in the Information System of Transfusion Services (SISTRA), coordinated by the NBC.

Platelet rich plasma use for treatment of acne scars: an overview of systematic reviews.

Background: A reappraisal of the conclusions of systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses validity related to Platelet-rich plasma (PRP), alone or in combination with other treatments, compared to regimens PRP-free for the treatment of acne scars.

Materials And Methods: An overview of SRs. The methodological quality of the reviews was assessed using AMSTAR-2 checklist; quality of the evidence of primary studies was appraised following the GRADE approach.

Hyperimmune Globulins for the Management of Infectious Diseases.

This review is focused on the use of hyperimmune globulin therapy to treat some infectious diseases of viral or bacterial origin. Despite the introduction of antibiotics and vaccines, plasma immunoglobulin therapy from whole blood donation can still play a key role. These treatments provide passive transfer of high-titer antibodies that either reduces the risk or the severity of the infection and offer immediate but short-term protection against specific diseases.

Plasma collection and supply in Europe: Proceedings of an International Plasma and Fractionation Association and European Blood Alliance symposium.

At the symposium organized by the International Plasma and Fractionation Association and European Blood Alliance, experts presented their views and experiences showing that the public sector and its blood establishments may strengthen the collection and increase the supply of plasma using the right strategies in plasma donor recruitment, retention and protection, scaling-up collection by increasing the number of donors within improved/new infrastructure, supportive funding, policies and legislation as well as harmonization of clinical guidelines and the collaboration of all stakeholders. Such approaches should contribute to increased plasma collection in Europe to meet patients' needs for plasma-derived medicinal products, notably immunoglobulins and avoid shortages. Overall, presentations and discussions confirmed that European non-profit transfusion institutions are committed to increasing the collection of plasma for fractionation from unpaid donors through dedicated programmes as well as novel strategies and research.

Ethics in transfusion medicine: Are the intricate layers of ethics all universal? A global view.

Ethical principles have been considered, and in several respects regulated, along the entire blood procurement chain from donor motivation to transfusion to the patient. Consent of donors and voluntary non-remunerated donation are fields which have been addressed by codes of ethics and legislation. Caring for donor health is an area of further development of ethical standards.

The Italian registry of therapeutic apheresis: year of activity 2021.

In 2019, the Italian National Blood Center (NBC), at the request of the Italian Scientific Society of Haemapheresis and Cell Manipulation (SIdEM), included the Italian Registry of Therapeutic Apheresis (IRTA) in the Information System of Transfusion Services (SISTRA), whose activity is coordinated by the NBC. The IRTA provides institutions and scientific societies with a wide range of information including therapeutic procedures and outcomes of treated patients. The Italian National Health Service offers therapeutic apheresis for patients with various conditions, but it is mainly the patient with haematological and/or neurological disorders who turns to the apheresis centres as evidenced by the activity data of 2021.

Education in transfusion medicine, Part III - The importance of haemovigilance education.

According to the literature, there are significant differences in the availability of education and training in transfusion medicine worldwide, with significant heterogeneity in the existing curricula. Recognising the need for education with the aim of achieving globally standardised competencies in transfusion medicine, a group of experts collaborating in the European and Mediterranean Initiative in Transfusion medicine (EMITm) proposed a process of incremental training and education. Subsequent to two previous papers published by this group on general education in transfusion medicine, this paper specifically refers to the field of education in haemovigilance.

A survey on preoperative autologous blood donation policy in bone marrow stem cell donors in Italy.

Background: The high safety of homologous blood components, together with the introduction of the Patient Blood Management strategy, has led to the progressive abandonment of preoperative autologous blood donation (PAD) in surgery. Furthermore, recent scientific publications provide evidence about the non-usefulness of PAD in the collection of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) from bone marrow (BM), also in consideration of harvest procedure safety. Nevertheless, no conclusive studies have been published yet.

Corticosteroids use for COVID-19: an overview of systematic reviews.

Purpose: A reappraisal of the validity of the conclusions of systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses related to corticosteroids use for the treatment of COVID-19.

Material And Methods: An overview of SRs (umbrella review). The methodological quality of the SRs was assessed using tha AMSTAR-2 checklist; quality of the evidence was appraised following the GRADE approach.

Chagas Disease and Transfusion Risk in Italy: The Results of a National Survey.

Background: Universal serological screening in endemic areas is essential for preventing Chagas disease transmission by transfusions, while in non-endemic areas, screening is provided only to donors exposed to the infection risk. In this respect, in order to ensure high and uniform standards of quality and safety of blood components, the Italian National Blood Centre conducted a survey to detect information on management of donors at risk of Chagas disease and on the current transfusion risk.

Methods: The National Blood Centre conducted a survey on preventive measures for Chagas disease in the years 2020-2021.

Horiba Micros ES 60 Blood Cell Analyzer in Blood Donor Eligibility: A Validation Study.

Background: Eligibility criteria for blood donation require hemoglobin levels of ≥12.5 g/dL for women and ≥13.5 g/dL for men, and a platelet count of ≥180 × 109/L.

Epidemiology of Treponema pallidum and HIV co-infections in the Italian blood donor population: 2009-2021.

Background: In recent years, co-infection from HIV and Treponema pallidum has become more common. Early detection of the co-infection allows us to implement therapeutic strategies to control the evolution of the disease and to contain its transmission in the general population. The donor population is the target of choice for the detection of early-stage infections.