2017 EACTS/EACTA Guidelines on patient blood management for adult cardiac surgery.
There is growing evidence that patient blood management (PBM) is becoming “standard of care” in major surgery associated with high blood loss, particularly in cardiac surgery. These guidelines are the […]
Effect of pre-operative anaemia on post-operative complications in low-resource settings.
This study reports on the impact of anaemia upon surgical outcome by retrospectively analysing a cohort of 2073 patients operated upon a hospital ship in the low-income settings of the Republic […]
Association of preoperative anemia with postoperative mortality in neonates.
In this retrospective analysis of data collected in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program Databases, the authors aimed to determine whether there is an association in […]
The impact of a multidisciplinary blood conservation protocol on patient outcomes and cost after cardiac surgery.
This before-and-after study confirms that a standardised intraoperative blood conservation programme including expanded use of cell salvage, extensive adoption of acute isovolemic haemodilution and routine use of retrograde autologous priming […]
Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents in critically ill trauma patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
In this paper, French and co-authors address the ongoing debate on the use of erythropoietin (EPO) in critically ill patients. Besides its haematopoietic effect resulting in increased haemoglobin levels and […]
Does the severity of preoperative anemia or blood transfusion have a stronger impact on long-term survival after cardiac surgery?
In this study, von Heymann and colleagues describe the effects of different degrees of preoperative anaemia and/or transfusion on long-term survival. The most striking finding of this investigation is the […]
Erythropoietin to reduce allogeneic red blood cell transfusion in patients undergoing total hip or knee arthroplasty.
The authors conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the benefits, the safety and the costs of recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) in total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA). […]
Preprocedure anemia management decreases transfusion rates in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation.
The authors sought to assess the impact of a preoperative blood conservation approach in treating anaemia and preventing blood transfusions in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). As of […]
Effects of intravenous iron therapy in iron-deficient patients with systolic heart failure: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Iron deficiency has been observed in a large proportion of patients with chronic heart failure. Most importantly, the presence of iron deficiency has been shown to impair exercise capacity, to […]
The incidence and importance of anaemia in patients undergoing cardiac surgery in the UK – the first Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthetists national audit.
Klein and colleagues performed a national audit in the UK in order to evaluate the incidence and clinical impact of preoperative anaemia in patients who underwent cardiac surgery between 2010 […]
Intraoperative anemia and single red blood cell transfusion during cardiac surgery: an assessment of postoperative outcome including patients refusing blood transfusion.
This study by Hogervorst et al. is an extensive database analysis that has some methodological problems which were appropriately addressed by the authors. Reading of the article is recommended as […]
The important role for intravenous iron in perioperative patient blood management in major abdominal surgery: a randomized controlled trial.
In this study, patients with confirmed iron-deficiency anaemia (IDA) scheduled for major abdominal surgery (mostly gastrointestinal cancer resection) were randomly assigned to receive either intravenous (IV) iron or usual care. […]
How do we develop and implement a preoperative anemia clinic designed to improve perioperative outcomes and reduce cost?
The authors describe the development and implementation of a preoperative anaemia screening and treatment programme at Duke University Hospital. They describe 7 steps in the implementation process: 1. Institutional rationalisation […]
Meta-analysis of the association between preoperative anaemia and mortality after surgery.
In this meta-analysis, Fowler et al. investigated the impact of preoperative anaemia on postoperative outcomes. A total of 24 eligible studies including 949,445 cardiac and non-cardiac surgery patients were identified. […]
‘Fit to fly’: overcoming barriers to preoperative haemoglobin optimization in surgical patients.
This is a most interesting review on patient blood management (PBM) authored by experts in the field. The authors review 10 common unsubstantiated misconceptions regarding preoperative anaemia management, including misconceptions on […]