Abstract
Dilute suspensions of EDTA anticoagulated red blood cells from 32 patients with polycythemia vera were filtered through 5 µm polycarbonate filters in a constant flow system. When the buffy coat alone was removed the remaining white cells had a considerable influence on the filtration behaviour. A method was developed in which 95% of the white cells were removed by prefiltration of the whole blood through a natural cotton-wool filter. In further experiments the filterability of red cells from 19 polycythemic patients was compared with that from controls and found to show no significant difference. The small number of remaining white cells still influenced the results and it is suggested that white cell artefacts may explain some of the difference previously reported by this technique.
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