Blood, 1961, Vol. 17, No. 1, pp. 97-108.
© 1961 American Society of Hematology, Inc.
A New Method for the Preparation of Human
Cadaver Bone Marrow for Transfusion
R. N. RAY 1,
M. CASSELL 1, and
H. CHAPLIN JR. 1
1 Division of Hematology, Departments of Medicine and Preventive Medicine,
Washington University School of Medicine and the Barnes Hospital, St. Louis, Mo.
1. A simple, economical and effective method has been described for obtaining cadaver bone marrow following a routine autopsy.
2. Individual vertebral bodies are dissected free of soft tissue and their
surfaces are sterilized by immersion of the entire bone in 70 per cent ethyl
alcohol.
3. Following surface sterilization, the bones are placed in a modified sterile
plastic container and the nucleated marrow cells are expressed from the bone
by compression of the bag in a vise.
4. After the marrow particles have been dispersed by massaging the bag,
the marrow suspension is filtered and the fat is separated following gentle
centrifugation.
5. Sterile yields were obtained from 70-90 per cent of cadavers which were
judged suitable in terms of freedom from gross evidence of bacterial infection
at the time of autopsy.
6. High yields of nucleated hematopoietic cells were obtained, averaging
more than 50 x 109 cells as the investigators became more experienced with
the procedure.
7. Thirteen transfusions of cadaver marrow were administered to eight
patients. Minor symptoms and low-grade febrile responses were experienced
on three occasions; in four additional patients entirely asymptomatic temperature elevations of 0.5-2.2 F. were observed. The remaining six transfusions
were unaccompanied by fever or symptoms of any kind.
8. The possible value of the technic for definitive study of the therapeutic
usefulness of bone marrow transfusion has been discussed.
Submitted on August 15, 1960
