A comparative study of stored arterial versus venous blood collected using the acute normovolemic hemodilution method in coronary artery bypass grafting patients in Iran

BACKGROUND: In the present study, arterial and venous blood was collected from patients who were candidates for elective coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG); the blood was stored for 28 days and cellular, biomechanical, and hematological changes in blood were compared to determine whether stored arterial blood is superior to stored venous blood. METHODS: The present follow-up comparative study included 60 patients >18 years of age, with hemoglobin >14 mg/dl and ejection fraction >40% who were candidates for CABG. After induction of anesthesia, 250 ml of arterial or venous blood was drawn from patients (arterial blood group and venous blood group). Laboratory blood samples were taken at specified times from the collected blood and re-injected into the patients after CABG. RESULTS: Significant differences were observed in pH, partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO(2)), partial pressure of oxygen (PO(2)), bicarbonate (HCO(3)), and glucose values at several time points between the groups. Other parameters such as urea and creatinine did not show any significant differences between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Twenty-eight days of storage can have a negative effect on some of the cellular, biochemical, and hematological components of arterial and venous blood; however, the quality of stored arterial blood and venous blood does not differ significantly.