Relationship between HLA alleles and cytomegalovirus infection after allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

suggested by Pereira, the length of storage of the transfused RBCs should be investigated as a possible explanation for the disagreements among the available RCTs in any future IPD meta-analysis of these studies. It is possible that future research will not corroborate the reported association6,8 between increased length of storage of the transfused blood components and an increased risk of postoperative infection. If the TRIM effects were mediated by immunologically active, intact allogeneic WBCs,1 fresher (as opposed to older) blood components would be associated with an increased risk of infection. Table 1 presents 3 mechanisms that may underlie an association of ABT with postoperative infection as mutually exclusive hypotheses and shows the expected results from future observational comparisons of patients transfused before or after the implementation of universal WBC reduction, in the event that these 3 hypotheses were indeed mutually exclusive and only 1 of them was correct.