Frozen Red Cells Revisited

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Abstract
IN late 1978, the American Red Cross reported that the steadily increasing demand for thawed, deglycerolized human red cells had finally leveled off at its 57 regional blood centers, suppliers of over half the nation's blood for transfusion. The number had reached nearly 100,000 units annually, as compared with approximately 12,000 units in 1972. By May 1983 the number had declined to approximately 42,000 units.What factors account for this roller-coaster pattern in the use of previously frozen red cells, a product of sophisticated modern cryobiology that held such promise when it began its evolution in the early 1950s? In . . .