Effect of autologous blood transfusion on cerebral cytokine expression.

BACKGROUND: Autologous blood transfusion (ABT), for example, by means of cell saver equipment, is used to reduce the need for allogenic blood transfusion in patients with high perioperative blood loss. This study investigated the effect of blood/extracorporal surface interaction during withdrawal and retransfusion of shed autologous blood on cerebral inflammation in rats. Rats subjected to hypotension with cerebral ischemia served as positive controls. METHODS: Eighty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were anesthetized with sevoflurane, instrumented, and randomly assigned to the following groups: sham-operation (SHAM), autologous blood withdrawal/transfusion only (ABT), or bilateral carotid ar…