Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1984. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The New York Times - September 30, 1984
Richard Levine and Katherine Roberts
After a conference at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., last week, 11 health experts convened by Federal health agencies to make recommendations warned that a run on fresh-frozen plasma, the watery fluid that makes up 55 percent of the blood by volume, was itself causing illness. Its use has risen tenfold during the last decade, despite a "paucity of definitive indications" of its merits and "mounting evidence of its potential risks." Of the 3.5 million patients who receive transfusions each year, up to 700,000 receive plasma - perhaps 630,000 more than should be getting it, in the opinion of Dr. James L. Tullis, an emeritus Harvard professor, who headed the panel.
A result, according to one estimate by the panelists, is up to 10,000 cases a year of viral hepatitis, which can be transmitted through plasma. The panel also warned that plasma might "possibly" transmit the virus believed to cause AIDS, the deadly acquired immune deficiency syndrome.
Part of the problem is that the fluid cannot be heated without destroying its value, so it can't be purified of any viruses it might contain. Although several screening tests have been developed, they are far from comprehensive. For these reasons, the panel recommended that surgical patients donate their own blood in advance for use during their operations, and also suggested that physicians rely more on plasma components that can be purified.
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