New research published in Anesthesiology found a blood management program for patients undergoing hip or knee replacement helped reduce the number of transfusions, overall blood use and improved outcomes.
Researchers evaluated clinical outcomes and blood transfusion practices in adult orthopedic surgery patients over a four-year period, covering the period before and after the blood management program was implemented. The study included 2,402 patients after the program was implemented and 1,507 before.
Here are the key takeaways:
1. The blood management program included 10 strategies to reduce transfusions, including only administering a single unit of blood unless the patient was hemorrhaging, administering drugs that help reduce bleeding and using new surgery techniques to reduce bleeding.
2. After implementing the new blood management program, the percentage of orthopedic surgery patients who received blood transfusions dropped from 16.1 percent to 9.4 percent.
3. Improved outcomes occurred in patients 65 and older.