In Vitro Reduction of Device Thrombosis Using a Combined Nitrite and Red Light Treatment

Device thrombosis occurs in otherwise life-saving procedures involving blood-contacting medical devices. Despite the use of systemic blood thinners, anticoagulants, and antiplatelet agents, device thrombosis can lead to substantial neurological damage, limb loss, death, and prolonged illness. Systemic treatments can also lead to bleeding. New methods to locally reduce thrombosis are urgently needed. Earlier work has shown that nitrite is a unique nitric oxide (NO) donor that is well-suited to use in blood and that its ability to inhibit platelet activation is potentiated by far-red light. In this study, we have applied our combined nitrite/light treatment in a prototypical technique used to prevent device thrombosis in extracorporeal circulation. We show that circuit pressure and survival are improved by an average of 213 percent with our treatment compared to the control. In addition, the dual therapy preserved platelet numbers at the end of the circulation time (%17 difference in platelet loss), and it reduced circuit hemolysis 2.3 fold. Thus, the combination of nitrite and red-light illumination has potential to prevent device thrombosis and to lead new clinical applications and practices.