European surgeons have used fibrin glue extensively during thoracic, cardiovascular, and general surgical operations. Until now, however, it has been available only as a commercial preparation made from pooled human plasma, and it has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in the United States because of a high associated risk of hepatitis and acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Methods of obtaining fibrinogen, an essential component of fibrin glue, from cryoprecipitate or fresh frozen plasma have been published recently. However, the cryoprecipitate method results in relatively low concentrations of fibrinogen, which can reduce glue effectiveness. The fresh frozen plasma method is more expensive and does not meet the standards of the American Association of Blood Banks for the "closed" system required for safe handling and management of blood component products. Both the cryoprecipitate and the fresh frozen plasma methods result in waste of unstable clotting factors. These factors are necessary to replace human plasma clotting deficiencies but are not necessary for the production of fibrin glue. The authors have developed an efficient, high-concentration blood bank method for producing and maintaining a local supply of a safer and less expensive but equally effective material derived from stored human plasma. This material is produced using approved blood bank techniques for a "closed" system in blood component production, thus reducing the risks of contamination and infection, and its fibrinogen concentration is higher than that of standard cryoprecipitate. The cost of 1 unit of this fibrin glue is comparable to that for 1 unit of cryoprecipitate and less than that for 1 unit of fresh frozen plasma.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)