Introduction: Packed Red cells (Packed RBC) forms an important element in the treatment of
various medical conditions. RBC transfusions are generally done to treat hemorrhage and also to
enhance oxygen delivery to tissues. Transfusion of RBCs should be based on the patient's
clinical condition. Our present study was aimed at analyzing the appropriateness of usage of
packed red blood cell usage in our tertiary care hospital.
Materials and Methods: This present study was a retrospective analysis of 3000 packed red
blood cells issue request forms over the period from august 2017 to October 2017 were
analyzed. The appropriate use of packed RBC was assessed by AABB revised guidelines 2016.
The transfusion was considered inappropriate if it does not follow these guidelines.
Results: The maximum packed red blood cells were transfused in the department of nephrology
no 918 units (19.58 %) followed by department of CT surgery no 793 units (16.91 %) and
department of General Medicine no 710 units (15.14 %).Maximum number of packed red blood
cells were utilized for elective surgeries i.e. 1323 units (28.2 %) followed by malignancies 1012
(21.6%). Commonest indication in electric surgeries is for Percutaneous Nephro Lithotomy,
where as in malignancies commonest indication being the acute myeloid leukemia.
Conclusion: The overall prevalence rate of appropriate usage of packed RBC in our hospital is
62.4%, which is quite lower and also we found out increasing number of single unit transfusions
which could have been avoided with proper implementation of guidelines. These retrospective
studies are useful to identify the critical areas requiring intervention so that inappropriate usage
of blood and components can be minimized
