Total Blood Transfusion Volume Research Articles

Clinical efficacy of thalidomide for various genotypes of beta thalassemia

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the therapeutic efficacy of thalidomide across various genotype presentations of β-thalassemia so as to facilitate the early screening of thalidomide-sensitive thalassemia cases and to understand the impact of iron overload on thalidomide.MethodsFrom our initial sample of 52 patients, we observed 48 patients with β-thalassemia for two years after administration of thalidomide. This cohort included 34 patients with transfusion-dependent thalassemia (TDT) and 14 patients with non-transfusion-dependent thalassemia (NTDT). We recorded the values of hemoglobin (Hb), fetal hemoglobin (HbF), and serum ferritin (SF) in the baseline period and at 1, 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after enrollment, as well as the pre- and post-treatment blood transfusion volume in all 48 cases. According to the increase in Hb levels from baseline during the 6-month observation period, the response to thalidomide was divided into four levels: main response (MaR), minor response (MiR), slow response (SLR), and no response (NR). A decrease in serum ferritin levels compared to baseline was considered alleviation of iron overload. We calculated the overall response rate (ORR) as follows: ORR = MaR + MiR + SLR/number of observed cases.ResultsThe ORR was 91.7% (44/48 cases), and 72.9% showed MaR (35/48 cases). Among the 34 patients with TDT, 21 patients (61.8%) were free of blood transfusion, and the remaining 13 patients still required blood transfusion, but their total blood transfusion volume reduced by 31.3% when compared to the baseline. We found a total of 33 cases with 10 combinations of advantageous genes, which included 5 cases with βCD41-42/βCD17 and 6 cases with βCD41-42/β-28. Based on the treatment outcomes among the 48 cases in the observation group, there were 33 cases in the MaR group and 15 cases in the SLR/NR group. There was a difference in HbF between the two groups at baseline (P = 0.041). There were significant differences between the two groups in Hb and HbF at the time points of 6 and 12 months, respectively (P < 0.001). Compared to the baseline measurement, there was a significant decrease in the level of SF at months 12 and 24 (P < 0.001).ConclusionIn this study, we identified 10 β-thalassemia gene combinations that were sensitive to thalidomide. These gene combinations can be used for initial screening and to predict the therapeutic effect of thalidomide in clinical practice. We examined the therapeutic response to thalidomide and found that the administration of thalidomide in combination with standardized iron removal was more beneficial in reducing iron overload.

Trends in mechanical circulatory support use and outcomes of patients with cardiogenic shock in Japan, 2010-2020: a nationwide inpatient database study

Abstract Background/Introduction Little is known about the impact of the downgrade of guideline recommendations for intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) use and the approval of the Impella in Japan, where IABPs have been enthusiastically used. Purpose This study aimed to describe the annual trends in the mechanical circulatory support (MCS) use and outcomes in patients with cardiogenic shock (CS) requiring MCS. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study using the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination database, which contained administrative claims data and discharge abstracts from more than 1,500 acute care hospitals and covered approximately 90% of all tertiary emergency hospitals in Japan. Using the data from July 2010 to March 2021, we identified inpatients with CS requiring MCS. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. The secondary outcomes were the length of MCS, length of hospital stay, total hospitalization cost, major bleeding, ischemic stroke, continuous renal replacement therapy, and total blood transfusion volume during the hospitalization. The patients were stratified into three groups: (i) IABP alone, (ii) Impella alone, and (iii) extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) regardless of IABP or Impella use. The patient characteristics and outcomes were reported by the fiscal year. Results Of the 160,559 eligible patients, 117,599 (73.2%) were identified as the IABP alone group, 1,465 (0.9%) as the Impella alone group, and the remaining 41,495 (25.8%) as the ECMO group. Of the overall 1,107 hospitals, IABP alone was used in 1,096 (99.0%), Impella alone in 120 (10.8%), and ECMO in 831 (75.1%). In-hospital mortality was 17.4%, 38.0%, and 68.3% in the IABP alone, Impella alone, and ECMO groups, respectively. The length of hospital stay was 32.6, 36.6, and 29.4 days and the total hospitalization cost was 4,522, 9,098, and 5,840 thousand yen in the IABP alone, Impella alone, and ECMO groups, respectively. All of major bleeding, ischemic stroke, and continuous renal replacement therapy were most prevalent in the Impella alone group and least prevalent in the IABP alone group. The prevalence of an IABP alone significantly decreased from 80.5% in 2010 to 65.3% in 2020 (P for trend &amp;lt;0.001). In contrast, the prevalence of an Impella alone significantly increased from 0.0% in 2010 to 5.0% in 2020, and the prevalence of ECMO significantly increased from 19.5% in 2010 to 29.6% in 2020. In-hospital mortality significantly increased from 29.3% in 2010 to 32.6% in 2020 in the overall patients with CS requiring MCS, but significantly decreased in those requiring ECMO from 73.7% in 2010 to 64.1% in 2020 (P for trend &amp;lt;0.001 for both). Conclusions There were significant annual changes in the patterns of MCS use and clinical outcomes in patients with CS requiring MCS.

Effect of an assessment of fibrin-based rotational thromboelastometry on blood transfusion and clinical outcomes in cardiovascular surgery: A cohort study

The clinical importance of viscoelastic testing in patient blood management when performing cardiovascular surgery is increasing. We aimed to examine the effect of a blood transfusion protocol including an assessment of fibrin-based rotational thromboelastometry on transfusion volume, mortality, and bleeding complications in patients undergoing cardiac or thoracic aortic surgery. We retrospectively studied a cohort of 376 consecutive patients who underwent cardiopulmonary bypass before (control group: 150 cardiac and 35 thoracic aortic surgeries) and after (assessment group: 154 cardiac and 37 thoracic aortic surgeries) introducing the fibrin polymerization assessment with thromboelastometry in the blood transfusion protocol. The transfusion volume and clinical outcomes were compared between the control and assessment groups, and the standardized (mean) difference (S[M]D) was calculated as an indicator of statistical effect size. Compared with the control group, the assessment group had a lower total blood transfusion volume (mL) in cardiac (2720 ± 1282 vs. 2034 ± 1330, p < 0.0001, [SMD] = 0.68) and thoracic aortic surgeries (5236 ± 2732 vs. 3714 ± 1768, p < 0.0001, SMD = 0.67). The 1-year mortality rates were 1.9 % and 2.7 % in cardiac and thoracic aortic surgeries, respectively. Significant differences were not observed in the 1-year mortality (3.2 % vs. 1.0 %, p = 0.16, relative risk [RR] = 0.32 with 95 % confidence intervals [CI] = 0.06–1.57, SD = 0.15), re-exploration for bleeding (4.8 % vs. 2.6 %, p = 0.28, RR = 0.53 with 95 % CI = 0.18–1.57, SD = 0.12), and major bleeding (17.3 % vs. 13.0 %, p = 0.31, RR = 0.75 with 95 % CI = 0.46–1.22, SD = 0.12) rates between the control and assessment groups. The assessment of fibrin polymerization with thromboelastometry using the blood transfusion protocol reduced the blood transfusion volume in cardiovascular surgery.

Perioperative safety and feasibility of simultaneous off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting with non-cardiac surgical procedures of moderate-to-severe severity

Objective: To examine the perioperative safety and feasibility of simultaneous off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) with non-cardiac surgical procedures of moderate-to-severe severity. Methods: The perioperative results of 54 patients underwent simultaneous OPCAB with non-cardiac surgical procedures from September 2013 to January 2019 at Department of Cardiac Surgery, Peking University First Hospital were assessed retrospectively. There were 46 males and 8 females, aging (65.8±8.8) years (range: 41 to 85 years). All simultaneous non-cardiac surgical procedures, including vascular (n=1), thoracic (n=26), general (n=12) and urologic surgical procedures (n=15), were assessed to be of moderate-to-severe grade by operative severity scoring system. Perioperative results were compared between the OPCAB patients who underwent simultaneous non-cardiac surgical procedures (n=54) and 1∶2 matched patients who underwent isolated OPCAB performed most recently by the same cardiac team with similar procedures accordingly (n=108), using t test, Mann-Whitney U test, χ2 test or Fisher exact test. Results: All baseline factors were matched between the two groups, with no significant difference on European system for cardiac operative risk evaluation (EuroSCORE) Ⅱ (1.185(0.758)% vs. 1.215(0.905)%, Z=‒0.036, P=0.972). No perioperative death was observed in the two groups. Although patients underwent simultaneous non-cardiac surgical procedures showed prolonged operation duration time ((324.9±97.1) minutes vs. (166.7±36.7) minites, t=11.564, P<0.01) and increased intraoperaive blood loss ((462.2±269.6) ml vs. (304.5±177.8) ml, t=3.866, P<0.01), primary postoperative complications, including perioperative myocardial infarction, atrial fibrillation, perioperative stroke, acute renal failure, wound infection, and bleeding reoperation did not show significant differences between the two groups (all P>0.05), while total blood transfusion volume, mechanical ventilation time and intensive care unit residence time also showed no significant differences between the two groups (all P>0.05). Conclusion: Simultaneous OPCAB with non-cardiac surgical procedures of moderate-to-severe severity in patients with operative indications are safe and feasible, and are not associated with increased postoperative risks when compared with isolated OPCAB.

Intraoperative and postoperative effects of TEG-guided platelet transfusion on antiplatelet drug-related intracerebral hemorrhage patients.

Intraoperative and postoperative effects of platelet transfusion on antiplatelet drug-related intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) patients were investigated. A retrospective study on 82 ICH patients undergoing emergency surgical treatment caused by antiplatelet drugs was conducted. Among them, 51 patients treated with platelet transfusion served as the observation group and 31 patients without platelet transfusion as the control group. The intraoperative and postoperative bleeding volume, blood transfusion volume and the rate of secondary bleeding were compared between observation and control group under the guidance of thromboelastography (TEG). The coagulation routine examination results of the two groups before surgery were in the normal range, but TEG indicated an excessive inhibition of platelet function (platelet inhibition rate >89%). The platelet number after treatment increased significantly in the two groups of patients and it was significantly higher in observation group than that in control group (P<0.05). The intraoperative bleeding volume in observation group was significantly lower than that in control group. The total blood transfusion volume in observation group was significantly lower than that in control group (Z=2.681, P=0.036), the postoperative hematoma residual volume in observation group was significantly lower than that in control group (t=2.145, P=0.035), and the drainage volume in observation group was significantly lower than that in control group (t=2.401, P=0.019). Only 3.92% of the patients in observation group and 19.35% in control group had secondary surgery, and the difference of the recurrence rate of secondary bleeding between the two groups was statistically significant (χ2=3.610, P=0.048). TEG detection indicator can more comprehensively and accurately evaluate the preoperative coagulation function of patients. This study suggests that preoperative platelet transfusion can improve the intraoperative and postoperative bleeding of ICH patients after antiplatelet therapy to some extent, reducing the blood transfusion volume and the secondary bleeding rate.

A Comparative Study of Decompressive Laminectomy and Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion in Grade I Degenerative Lumbar Spondylolisthesis.

Background:For Grade I degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis (DLS), both decompression alone and decompression with fusion are effective surgical treatments. Which of the two techniques is superior is still under debate. The purpose of this study was to compare clinical outcomes after decompression alone versus decompression with fusion for Grade I DLS.Materials and Methods:139 patients who underwent surgery for Grade I DLS at L4-L5 were prospectively enrolled. Decompression alone was used to treat 74 patients, and decompression with fusion was used to treat 65 patients. Six patients in the first group and four patients in the second group were lost during the 2-year followup. Demographic data were recorded. Operation time, perioperative blood loss, total blood transfusion volume, and length of hospital stay were compared between the two groups. Back pain and functional outcomes were evaluated using the visual analog scale (VAS) and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), respectively.Results:Baseline demographic data were not different between the two groups. Operation time, blood loss, total blood transfusion volume, and length of hospital stay were all significantly greater in the fusion group than in the decompression group. This would be expected because fusion is the more invasive procedure. VAS scores were not different up until 6 months postoperatively. Twelve months after surgery, however, VAS scores were significantly lower in the fusion group. The same results were shown in terms of ODI. Although ODI decreased in both groups over time, the fusion group showed better functional outcomes than did the decompression group.Conclusions:Although both decompression alone and decompression with fusion improved functional outcomes for Grade I DLS, fusion surgery resulted in better results compared to decompression alone. Therefore, fusion should be considered as the treatment of choice for Grade I DLS.

Short-term effectiveness analysis of one-stage bilateral total hip arthroplasty by direct anterior approach

To compare the effectiveness of one-stage bilateral total hip arthroplasty by direct anterior approach (DAA) and by posterolateral approach, and to investigate the application value of DAA in one-stage bilateral total hip arthroplasty. The clinical data of 65 patients who underwent one-stage bilateral total hip arthroplasty by DAA or posterolateral approach between June 2010 and November 2015 were analyzed retrospectively. DAA was used in 34 cases (group A) and posterolateral approach was used in 31 cases (group B). There was no significant difference in the gender, age, body mass index, preoperative hemoglobin level, etiology, disease duration, preoperative Harris score, and preoperative visual analogue scale (VAS) score between 2 groups ( P>0.05) with comparability. The incision length, operation time, intraoperative blood loss, total blood transfusion volume, hospitalization time, early postoperative complications, Harris score, and VAS score were recorded and compared between 2 groups. The simple Likert scale method was applied to evaluate the patient satisfaction, and the imaging evaluation was used. The incision length, operation time, intraoperative blood loss, total blood transfusion volume, and hospitalization time of group A were significantly less than those of group B ( P<0.05). The patients were followed up 15-48 months (mean, 25.3 months) in group A and 12-51 months (mean, 27.6 months) in group B. The overall incidence of complications related to surgery in group A (10.29%) was significantly lower than that of group B (19.35%) ( χ2=8.769, P=0.023). The acetabular anteversion and abduction angle were in the normal range of 2 groups except 1 hip (1.47%) of group A had a higher acetabular anteversion than normal value. Unstable fixed prosthesis happened in 1 hip of groups A and B respectively, and the remaining femoral calcar had no obvious bone resorption and fixed stably. The Harris score and VAS score at each time point after operation of 2 groups were significantly improved when compared with preoperative scores ( P<0.05), and the differences between the time points after operation were also significant ( P<0.05). The Harris score at 1 and 3 months after operation and the VAS score at 3 days after operation of group A were significantly better than those of group B ( P<0.05), but no significant difference was found at last follow-up between 2 groups ( P>0.05). According to the simple Likert scale method to analyze patient satisfaction, comprehensive satisfaction of group A (97.1%, 33/34) was significantly higher than that of group B (67.7%, 21/31) ( χ2=10.343, P=0.001). The application of DAA in one-stage bilateral total hip arthroplasty can significantly relieve the pain, accelerate the recovery of hip joint function, and improve the patient satisfaction. But in clinical application, more attentions should be paid to strictly grasp the indications and prevent the early complications. The long-term effectiveness needs to be further observed.

Complications analysis of posterior vertebral column resection in 40 patients with spinal tumors.

The aim of the present study was to summarize and analyze the complications of posterior vertebral column resection in patients with spinal tumors. The complications of 40 patients following surgery were recorded, and surgery-related parameters including segments, bleeding volume and surgical duration were recorded and analyzed. SPSS 12.0 software was used to analyze the correlation between the complications and these parameters retrospectively. A total of 36 complications were reported. The median follow-up duration of the patients was 14 months (range, 4–78 months). Transient late tracheal extubation was associated with higher intraoperative bleeding volume, lower preoperative forced vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in 1 sec. Replaced spinal segment subsidence was associated with increased duration of surgery, higher intraoperative bleeding volume and higher total blood transfusion volume. Thrombocytopenia was associated with increased duration of surgery and higher total blood transfusion volume. The majority of the complications were minor and did not affect the recovery of the patients. Active prevention is necessary to reduce the incidence of complications, in particular, major ones.

The safety and efficacy of simultaneous or staged bilateral total knee arthroplasty in treatment of both knee osteoarthritis

Objective To compare the clinical safety and efficacy of simultaneous bilateral total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and staged bilateral TKA in treatment of both knee osteoarthritis.Methods A total of 119 patients (14 males,105 females) with both knee osteoarthritis who underwent TKA from March 2005 to March 2012 were retrospectively analyzed.Their ages ranged from 30 to 81 years with the average age of 65.23±6.33 years.The patients were divided into three groups according to different treaments:simultaneous bilateral TKA group,staged bilateral TKA group during the same hospitalization period and staged bilateral TKA group in two separate hospitalization periods.All the procedures were performed by the same surgeons and the same type of prostheses (LPS-Flex,Zimmer,US) were implanted.Differences of preoperative factors (age,height,body mass in dex and complications),treatment factors (preoperative hemoglobin,operation time,drainage volume,blood transfusion volume,total hospitalization time and total hospitalization costs) and postoperative curative effects (HSS scores,WOMAC scores and ROM)among three groups were compared.The analysis of viariace,LSD-t test and x2 test were used for data analysis.Results The differences of gender composition,body mass index,preoperative hemoglobin were not statistically significant among three groups (P＞0.05).The patientsin simultaneous bilateral TKA group were younger,and havelower incidence ofpreoperative complications (P＜0.05).The differences of post-operative HSS scores,WOMAC scores and ROM were not statistically significant among the three groups (P＞0.05).Although the total hospitalization time,operation time were shorter,and the hospitalization costs were significant ly lower in simultaneous bilateral TKA group,the total drainage volume,the total blood transfusion volume and incidence of postoperative complication rate were higher in this group than those of the other two grops (P＜0.05).Conclusion Due to great impact on patients' physiological conditions,more postoperative complication occurrence and high risk of periprosthetic infection,the decision of simultaneous bilateral TKA should be made cautiously. Key words: Osteoarthritis; Arthroplasty, replacement, knee; Comparative study

Combined Preoperative Autologous Blood Donation and Intra-Operative Cell Salvage for Hip Surgery

To review records of 161 consecutive hip surgery patients for whom preoperative autologous blood donation (PABD) was used in combination with intra-operative cell salvage (ICS). 114 women and 14 men aged 41 to 86 (mean, 64) years underwent 135 primary total hip arthroplasties (THAs), whereas 19 women and 7 men aged 16 to 52 (mean, 35) years underwent 26 rotational acetabular osteotomies (RAOs). Two or 3 weeks before the operation, patients deposited one unit (400 ml) of blood weekly, so long as their haemoglobin levels exceeded 110 g/l (if they had osteoarthritis) or 100 g/l (if they had rheumatoid arthritis). Patients were given oral ferrous sulphate, lactated Ringer's solution, and recombinant human erythropoietin. 800 and 1200 ml of blood were deposited for patients undergoing THA and RAO, respectively. Intra-operatively, ICS was carried out using a continuous autotransfusion system. The blood from ICS was transfused first, and then the blood from PABD was transfused during the latter half of the operation. By combining PABD and ICS, homologous blood transfusion was avoided in all patients, even in those with unexpected massive bleeding during surgery. In 3 patients, one unit of deposited autologous blood was discarded, because they showed no sign of anaemia. The mean total blood loss was almost 1.5 times higher in RAO than in THA patients (1095 vs 1550 ml). In the THA and RAO patients respectively, the mean amount of ICS was 181 and 210 ml, whereas the mean total blood transfusion volume was 975 and 1394 ml. No complications (including infection) related to autologous blood transfusion were observed during PABD, the surgery or the postoperative period. Homologous blood transfusion was avoided with the use of PABD and ICS. Preoperative donation of 800 and 1200 ml of blood (combined with ICS) seemed optimal, as only 3 units of blood were discarded.

Activation of a Neutrophil-Derived Inflammatory Response in the Airways During Cardiopulmonary Bypass

Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is believed to cause postoperative lung dysfunction. To more closely examine the inflammatory processes occurring in the airways during CPB, we serially measured inflammatory mediators, with the assistance of a new bronchoscopic microsample probe, in 11 patients undergoing repair of aortic arch aneurysms. Epithelial lining fluid (ELF) and arterial blood were sampled simultaneously after induction of anesthesia, at the time of pulmonary reperfusion, and at the end of surgery. A decrease in the PaO2/FiO2 ratio was observed at the end of surgery (P = 0.029). Although the ELF concentrations of interleukin (IL)-8, IL-6, and neutrophil elastase had increased significantly at the end of surgery (median = 23,200, 1818, and 12,900 microg/mL, respectively), they did not correlate with the degree of hypoxemia. Neutrophil elastase increased significantly at the time of pulmonary reperfusion, before IL-8 and IL-6, and independently of blood transfusions. At the end of surgery, IL-6 in ELF correlated with total blood transfusion volume (rho = 0.731, P = 0.011). These results indicate that a neutrophil-derived inflammatory response is activated in the airway in the early phase of CPB.

Safety and Efficacy of Autologous Platelet Transfusion in Cardiac Surgery: Comparison of Cryopreservation, Blood Collection on the Day before Surgery, and Blood Collection during Surgery

In a group of 39 patients with ischemic heart and valvular disease (January 1997 to May 1998), three platelet collection methods were compared in terms of safety and effectiveness. The methods were: (i) collection of autologous platelets over several weeks and freezing them for storage until surgery (frozen group, 12 patients); (ii) collection of autologous platelets on the day before surgery and preserving them without freezing (fresh group, 8 patients); and (iii) collection of autologous platelets intraoperatively (intraoperative group, 9 patients). Ten patients served as controls (control group). Blood pressure was not significantly affected by platelet collection in the frozen and fresh groups, but both systolic (P< 0.01) and diastolic blood pressure (P< 0.05) decreased significantly after collecting platelets in the intraoperative group. Similarly, heart rate was unaffected by platelet collection in the frozen and fresh groups, while it increased significantly in the intraoperative group (P< 0.05). Blood loss after 24 h was significantly smaller in the fresh group than in the frozen group (P< 0.05). Total blood transfusion volume was significantly smaller in the frozen and fresh groups than in the intraoperative and control groups (P< 0.05). Bleeding time 2 h postoperatively, when administration of autologous platelets had been completed, was reduced compared with immediately postoperative values in all three groups receiving autologous platelets (P< 0.05). However, only the frozen and fresh groups showed a significantly shorter bleeding time than the control group (P< 0.05). In all three groups receiving autologous platelets, the platelet count was significantly increased after administration of autologous platelets, but only the fresh group had a platelet count that was significantly greater than the control group (P< 0.05). From these results we conclude that the frozen and fresh groups received safer treatment than the intraoperative group. Although hemostasis improved after all three regimes of autologous platelet transfusion, only the frozen and fresh groups had a reduced need for allogeneic blood transfusion compared with the control group. For this reason we conclude that the frozen and fresh groups were also superior to the intraoperative group in terms of effectiveness. However, the recovery of platelets after frozen storage was low, and to obtain a good effect with the freezing method it is necessary to collect and store large volumes of platelets. In terms of simplicity, safety, and efficacy, the fresh method seems to be the preferred technique.