Preoperative very short-term, high-dose erythropoietin administration diminishes blood transfusion rate in off-pump coronary artery bypass: a randomized blind controlled study.

This prospective randomized single-blind study reported that transfusion requirement in patients undergoing off-pump cardiac surgery could be reduced by erythropoiesis stimulation in the immediate preoperative period. This study, however, did not possess the power to adequately evaluate the safety of preoperative short-term high-dose recombinant human erythropoietin administration.

– Philippe Van der Linden