Question: what is the difference between whole blood and packed red blood cells?
Answer: Packed red blood cells (PRBCs) are made from a unit of whole blood by centrifugation and removal of most of the plasma, leaving a unit with a hematocrit of about 60%. One PRBC unit will raise the hematocrit of a standard adult patient by 3% (or about 1%/mL/kg in a child - 12%/25 kg with the standard 300 mL PRBC unit).