This came up in my phlebotomy class and the teacher didn‘t really know. It must be an anticoagulant, right?
Citrate is added as an anticoagulant. It is not removed. When patients receive several units of packed red cells their calcium levels may drop as citrate binds the serum calcium. We infuse calcium in these cases.
N is correct about it being Na citrate + dextrose; using packed cells (taking off plasma) removes some of it (it is about 50 ccs per unit of blood currently it is called CPDA-1). If this could be a problem, packed red cells can also be washed, removing all the anticoagulant.
