Hemoglobinopathies

In this retrospective cohort study, researchers from the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, investigated the effects of extended antigenic matching on the incidence rate of delayed hemolytic transfusion reaction (DHTR) in patients with sickle cell disease. DHTR is a potentially life-threatening complication of red blood cell (RBC) transfusions in sickle cell disease (SCD) that is often induced by reactivation of previously formed antibodies. Four criteria—decreased Hb, increased LDH, pain, and dark urine—were used to evaluate occasional transfusion episodes between 2011 and 2020 for occurrence of DHTR symptoms. They concluded that "the incidence rate of DHTR in SCD remains high, in spite of extended matching of donor RBCs," and that greater awareness of DHTR "is of utmost importance to facilitate early diagnosis and, consequently, improve outcome."