Utilization and efficacy of autologous blood predeposit in radical prostatectomy with lymphadenectomy: implications for blood conservation and physician education programs.

Autologous blood predeposit is a widely used transfusion practice that has become a standard of care for elective surgery. Despite the support for this practice there are unanswered questions in the usage and efficacy of autologous blood programs. This study is a prospective analysis of 52 consecutively audited urologic patients undergoing elective, radical prostatectomy with lymphadenectomy in which all 52 patients predonated autologous blood. Preoperative blood donation, blood transfused, surgical blood lost, and the "transfusion trigger" were evaluated for each of these patients. We conclude (1) the rate of homologous blood exposure (15%) despite preoperative autologous blood donation in every patient indicates a need for innovative blood conservation strategies to minimize homologous blood transfusion in this surgical group. (2) Unnecessary autologous transfusions could be identified in 8 (15%) of 52 patients, all of which were single unit autologous blood transfusions. (3) Physician education programs that emphasize increased procurement of autologous blood along with more conservative transfusion of this blood are needed to avoid necessary homologous blood and unnecessary autologous blood transfusion.     

Underutilization of autologous blood donation among eligible elective surgical patients

In January 1983, blood banks encouraged the use of autologous blood for transfusion in elective surgical patients due to the advent of transfusion-associated AIDS. Since autologous blood does not transmit hepatitis and other viruses and does not cause alloimmunization, it should be utilized whenever possible. To determine whether patients eligible to predeposit autologous blood before elective operation were actually doing so, we studied patients at three hospitals between January 1 and June 30, 1985. Patients considered eligible for autologous predeposit blood donation were adults with preoperative hemoglobin levels of 11 g/dl or more who underwent elective surgical procedures for which blood transfusion was anticipated. Excluded were patients undergoing cardiovascular, intracranial, or renal transplant procedures. Of eligible patients, only 11 percent (32 of 278) predeposited blood; of these, 81 percent (26 of 32) were transfused with only autologous blood. Among eligible patients who did not predeposit blood, all could have benefited from predepositing because transfusion was likely for the procedure. Of those who did not predeposit, 33 percent (83 of 246) received homologous blood and therefore would have benefited from autologous donation. We conclude that autologous donations are underutilized for medically eligible patients undergoing elective operation.     

Predeposit autologous blood transfusion in patients with colorectal cancer: a feasibility study.

Over a 2-year period, a predeposit autologous blood transfusion service was provided for all patients undergoing elective surgery for left-sided colonic or rectal cancer in one hospital. Of 129 such patients, 28 were suitable for autologous donation. Eight of these received autologous blood only, 13 required no transfusion, and seven needed additional homologous blood. Thus, although predeposit autologous transfusion for patients with colorectal cancer is possible, only a very small proportion are likely to derive any benefit which it might confer.     

Autologous blood predeposit for elective surgery: a program for better use and conservation of blood

We report the results of a pilot study on predeposit autotransfusion for elective surgery. In 2 years 319 U, each consisting of 350 ml of blood, were donated by 206 patients. Each patient gave 1, 2, or 3 U according to hematocrit levels within 10 days of undergoing surgery on the gastrointestinal tract, lung, liver, kidney, brain, thyroid, arteries, or breast. A hemoglobin drop of about 0.8 gm/dl occurred after each blood donation. A total of 259 autologous and 128 homologous U were transfused to 166 patients during surgery or within postoperative day 4; 40 patients required no blood transfusion. About 70% of patients did not need homologous blood products in addition to autologous units. The most active team of surgeons and anesthesiologists covered about 40% of the patients' blood needs during the study period with autologous units. No patient experienced untoward reactions before, during, or after surgery. Surgeons' and anesthesiologists' responses to the program improved during the study as soon as the advantages of the procedure became clearer. However, gentle pressure from the Transfusion Center was essential for the program's expansion. The patients' acceptance was excellent. We conclude that predeposit autotransfusion is a safe and feasible procedure for transfusion treatment in elective surgery.     

Experience of predeposit autologous blood transfusion and medication of recombinant human erythropoietin in pediatric open heart surgery]

To avoid using the homologous blood, 11 children between the age of 5 and 15 years donated autologous blood of 10 ml/kg of body weight (upper limit 400 ml) once a week for two weeks prior to elective open heart surgery. Five of 11 children received erythropoietin (100 U/kg of body weight) intravenously three times a week for two weeks. Only one patient experienced a mild donor reaction but no adverse effects occurred in erythropoietin therapy. In all the patients cardiac operations were able to be completed without homologous blood transfusion. Patients treated with erythropoietin were not anemic despite of preoperative donation although without erythropoietin therapy patients were mildly anemic. Our experience documents safety and effectiveness of predeposit autologous blood transfusion and erythropoietin therapy in pediatrics.     

Clinical experience of autologous blood transfusion in patients undergoing nephrectomy with renal cell carcinoma]

We studied the possibility of performing radical nephrectomy with only predeposit autologous blood transfusion in the treatment of patients with renal cell carcinoma. A total of 15 patients who ranged in age from 32 to 69 years and had a hemoglobin concentration of over 12 g/dl on admission underwent radical nephrectomy with preoperative autologous blood donation. Five patients did not need transfusions. Seven patients were transfused only autologous blood. The other 3 required some homologous blood in addition to their own banked blood. In our series, patients were able to donate 600 ml of blood during the last week before surgery and their hemoglobin concentration did not decrease by over 2 g/dl except in the case of two patients with advanced disease. Therefore, it was concluded that an adequate autologous blood volume for nephrectomy was 600 ml and that 80% of renal cell carcinoma surgery could be performed without homologous blood transfusion. For patients requiring resection of renal cell carcinoma, autologous transfusion is recommended as safe and convenient.     

Utilization of preoperative autologous blood donation in elective surgery

Background: The aim of the present paper was to review the pattern of collection and transfusion of autologous red cells for elective surgical procedures Methods: Data on requests for preoperative autologous donation of blood were obtained from the Australian Red Cross Blood Service, Victoria and the Royal Melbourne Hospital for the calendar year 1998. The following information was collected: patient age, sex, surgery type, number of autologous units requested and collected and, if relevant, reasons for not achieving the requested collection. Transfusion of autologous units and any additional homologous units was confirmed from records at the blood banks of the Royal Melbourne Hospital and Melbourne Pathology (the pathology provider performing cross‐matching for the majority of autologous units collected by Australian Red Cross Blood Service, Victoria). Results: Over 12 months, 2803 units of autologous blood were requested and 2282 units collected from 1301 patients. The most common reason for failure to collect the number of units requested was insufficient time between referral and surgery. Of the autologous units collected, 73% were transfused giving a collection to transfusion ratio of 1.4. Sixty‐eight per cent of patients received their autologous units only, 10% received both autologous and homologous units, while 22% were not transfused. For the majority of procedures, patients using preoperative autologous donation of blood had higher transfusion rates than those who did not use this. Conclusions: Ninety per cent of patients undergoing preoperative autologous donation of blood successfully avoided homologous blood exposure. However, preoperative autologous donation of blood is both wasteful and increases the incidence of transfusion in surgical procedures.     

Use of predeposit autologous blood and intraoperative autotransfusion in urologic cancer surgery.

A total of 20 patients underwent major urologic cancer surgery with the combined use of predeposit autologous blood and intraoperative autotransfusion with the Haemonetics Cell Saver. The estimated blood loss ranged from 400 to 2,000 mL (mean 1,208 mL). Total transfusion requirements for the 20 patients were 85.5 units of which 82.5 (96%) were autologous. Predeposit autologous blood accounted for 53 percent, intraoperative autotransfusion blood 43 percent, and homologous blood 4 percent of the total transfusion requirements. Of the 20 patients in the study, only 1 received homologous blood. There were no complications related to either modality of autotransfusion. Our data suggest that using the combined modalities of predeposit autologous blood donation and intraoperative autotransfusion, major urologic cancer surgery can be performed without homologous blood in most cases.     

预存自体输血在全髋关节置换手术中的应用

目的：探讨全髋关节置换手术减少异体输血的措施，介绍一种较理想的自体输血方法。方法：自1997年12月－2001年1月，对80例全髋关节置换手术患者进行了预存自体输血。采血前、后前4d检测血红蛋白（HGB），红细胞（RBC），红细胞压积（HCT），结果：预存自体血23700ml,平均409ml，58例（72．5％）患者无需异体输血顺利度过围手术期，22例（27．5％）患者补充异体输血7392ml，平均336ml，而同期未做预存自体输血者输异体血69741ml，平均567ml，没有发生与预存自体输血相关的并发症。结论：预存自体输血简便，经济、安全、有效，全髋关节置换手术患者基本上依靠预存自体输血能安全度过围手术期。     

Rational use of blood cell products in orthopedics and traumatology

STUDY DESIGN: The risk of transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B and C viruses as well as the development of costs has changed the use of homologous blood cell products. METHODS: The present investigation shows the state of the art of blood salvage in orthopedic and elective trauma surgery. RESULTS: In this investigation the established methods such as controlled hypotension (spine surgery), arrest of blood supply (extremity surgery) and the following methods of autotransfusion have been examined: acute normovolemic hemodilution (ANH), intra- (Cell-Saver, Haemonetics Corp.) and postoperative autotransfusion, autologous donor plasmapheresis and autologous predeposit. CONCLUSIONS: Using this method it is possible to reduce homologous blood transfusions particularly in elective procedures such as orthopedic surgery and elective trauma surgery to a minimum.     

Autologous blood donation

Preoperative autologous blood donation has become accepted as a standard practice in elective surgery. Subsequent improvements in blood safety and evolving surgical techniques resulting in less blood loss have caused a national decline in preoperative autologous blood donation by approximately 50%. Nevertheless, the continuing emergence of new pathogens and the potential for severe blood inventory shortages continue to give preoperative autologous blood donation an important role in blood conservation strategies.     

Autologous transfusion in scoliosis operations: preoperative autologous blood donations and intraoperative mechanical autotransfusion

Autologous transfusion was used to reduce the high demand for blood accompanied with scoliosis surgery. Half of the blood loss could be saved by intraoperative autotransfusion (35 patients). This resulted in a corresponding reduction in homologous transfusion. An elimination of the need for homologous blood could be achieved only by the combination of preoperative blood donation and intraoperative autotransfusion (37 patients). With freezing the predeposit blood was independent of storage time and autologous plasma was available. Thus, the risks of transfusion can be avoided.     

Blood conservation in revision total hip arthroplasty

Blood loss from major orthopedic procedures such as spine and revision total joint arthroplasty often necessitates perioperative blood transfusion. The risk of infectious disease transmission associated with homologous blood transfusion, particularly hepatitis and acquired immune deficiency syndrome, mandates use of blood conservation techniques. Methods available to the orthopedic surgeon include preoperative autologous donation, intraoperative and postoperative blood salvage, hemodilution, and other selective anesthetic techniques such as hypotensive anesthesia and epidural or spinal anesthesia. The safest blood patients can receive is their own. With full use of these blood conservation methods, the need for homologous blood transfusion for elective orthopedic procedures should be minimal.     

Intraoperative autologous transfusion in children undergoing spinal surgery

An intraoperative autologous transfusion program was used in conjunction with preoperative phlebotomy in 25 children undergoing elective spinal surgery. Operative red blood cells, 10,000 ml, with an average hematocrit of 55%, as well as 7,300 ml of preoperative phlebotomy blood were returned to the patients. No complications were noted. The complete blood count on discharge was satisfactory, and the clotting parameters were unchanged. The results of this study show that intraoperative autologous transfusion with preoperative phlebotomy is safe, easy to perform, and cost-effective in children undergoing elective spinal surgery. The risks of homologous blood transfusions were eliminated.     

Autologous blood transfusions in children and young adults with low body weight undergoing spinal surgery

The perioperative course of 118 patients weighing less than 45.5 kg (100.1 pounds) who participated in a predeposited autologous blood program from 1979-1984 is reviewed. Average age was 13 years 11 months (range 6 years 4 months to 20 years 4 months) and the average weight, 41 kg (range 30-45.4 kg). All underwent spinal surgery, 96% for scoliosis. The program involved preoperative donation of blood that was stored and subsequently retransfused to replace operative blood losses. Patients donated an average of 811 ml (range 208-1,320 ml) blood. Operation and hospitalization were completed by 63% without receiving any homologous blood, and the need for donor blood was reduced in the remaining 37%. Preoperative blood donation and retransfusion led to no significant complications. We describe an autologous blood transfusion program and show that autotransfusion is a safe and preferred method of blood replacement for children and young adults with low body weight undergoing elective surgery.     

The effect of recombinant human erythropoietin therapy on red cell expansion during autologous blood donation

As the result of the institution of coordinated programs involving regional blood centers, hospital blood banks, information services, and physicians, preoperative autologous blood donation, a previously underutilized practice, has become a standard of care in a number of elective surgical procedures. In addition, the administration of recombinant human erythropoietin has been shown to facilitate the collection of autologous blood from patients scheduled for elective orthopaedic surgery. An analysis of the findings in a study of 263 orthopaedic surgical patients in which the relationship between autologous blood ordering, collection and storage, and subsequent blood transfusion was studied indicates that both blood ordering and blood procurement practices are significant factors with regard to allogeneic blood exposure.     

Pr?operative An?mie in der Orthop?die

In a national audit of elective orthopedic surgery conducted in the US, 30% of patients were found to have hemoglobin (Hgb) levels <?13?g/dl at preadmission testing. Preoperative anemia has been associated with increased mortality and morbidity after surgery, increased allogeneic blood transfusion therapy and increased rates of postoperative infection leading to a longer length of hospital stay. Because of the risks associated with allogeneic blood transfusions according to German law patients have to be offered the option of autologous transfusion if the risk associated with allogeneic blood transfusion is >?10%. However, one of these measures, the autologous blood donation, can exaggerate anemia and can increase the overall transfusion rates (allogeneic and autologous). As autologous procedures (autologous blood donation and cell salvage) are not always appropriate for anemic patients together with an expected shortage of blood and because preoperative anemia is associated with perioperative risks of blood transfusion, a standardized approach for the detection, evaluation and management of anemia in this setting was identified as an unmet medical need. A panel of multidisciplinary physicians was convened by the Society for Blood Management to develop a clinical care pathway for anemia management in elective surgery patients for whom blood transfusion is an option. In these guidelines elective surgery patients should have Hgb level determination at the latest 28?days before the scheduled surgical procedure. The patient target Hgb before elective surgery should be within the normal range (normal female ???120?g/l, normal male????130?g/l). Laboratory testing should take place to further determine nutritional deficiencies, chronic renal insufficiency and/or chronic inflammatory diseases. Nutritional deficiencies should be treated and erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA) therapy should be used for anemic patients in whom nutritional deficiencies have been ruled out and/or corrected.     

Preoperative anemia in orthopedic surgery: clinical impact, diagnostics and treatment

In a national audit of elective orthopedic surgery conducted in the US, 30% of patients were found to have hemoglobin (Hgb) levels ?10%. However, one of these measures, the autologous blood donation, can exaggerate anemia and can increase the overall transfusion rates (allogeneic and autologous). As autologous procedures (autologous blood donation and cell salvage) are not always appropriate for anemic patients together with an expected shortage of blood and because preoperative anemia is associated with perioperative risks of blood transfusion, a standardized approach for the detection, evaluation and management of anemia in this setting was identified as an unmet medical need. A panel of multidisciplinary physicians was convened by the Society for Blood Management to develop a clinical care pathway for anemia management in elective surgery patients for whom blood transfusion is an option. In these guidelines elective surgery patients should have Hgb level determination at the latest 28?days before the scheduled surgical procedure. The patient target Hgb before elective surgery should be within the normal range (normal female ≥?120?g/l, normal male?≥?130?g/l). Laboratory testing should take place to further determine nutritional deficiencies, chronic renal insufficiency and/or chronic inflammatory diseases. Nutritional deficiencies should be treated and erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA) therapy should be used for anemic patients in whom nutritional deficiencies have been ruled out and/or corrected.     

Preoperative autologous blood donation and intraoperative autotransfusion in first implantation of hip endoprostheses--a retrospective study]

The records of a total of 102 patients who underwent primary total hip replacement during 1987-88 were evaluated retrospectively. 36 patients had donated 1-3 units of whole blood preoperatively. Surgery was performed with the use of a device for intraoperative autotransfusion (IAT). Another 25 patients without preoperative autologous blood donation were operated with the use of IAT. None of these techniques was available for the remaining 41 patients. The mean perioperative blood loss and the mean volume of transfused blood were 1400 ml and 1000 ml respectively. Equal quantities of blood were lost intra- and postoperatively, whereas only one fifth of transfused blood was given intraoperatively. Homologous blood transfusion was not required in 32% of the patients for whom autologous blood was not available. However after preoperative autologous blood donation, 95% of the 2-unit donors and 100% of the 3-unit donors could be operated without homologous blood transfusion. Autologous blood donation did not increase the need for homologous blood transfusions. With the use of IAT it was only 20% of the patients that at least 500 ml of blood were salvaged for retransfusion. On the basis of these findings, elective primary total hip replacement would seem to be the ideal operation to be performed after preoperative autologous blood donation and, whenever possible with the use of IAT. The desirable ratio of 1,5:1 for the units of blood to be crossmatched preoperatively vs. units transfused perioperatively can be achieved solely by preoperative donation of 3 units of autologous blood.     

Orthopaedic-induced anemia: the fallacy of autologous donation programs

Total knee arthroplasty is associated with significant blood loss. Despite the initiation of various blood conservation modalities, allogeneic transfusion has yet to be eliminated. One hundred forty-eight patients who had unilateral primary total knee arthroplasties during a 3-year period were evaluated retrospectively for blood loss and transfusion rates. The patients were prescribed one unit of preoperative autologous donation that was to be transfused automatically on postoperative Day 1. Allogeneic transfusion was based on symptoms, and no numerical transfusion triggers were used. The preoperative autologous donation program resulted in increased preoperative anemia. Whereas only 26.2% of patients were in the high transfusion-risk group (hemoglobin >10 g/dL and < or = 13 g/dL) before surgery, 55.7% of patients were in this high-risk category after preoperative autologous donation. The patients did not recover from the autologous donations that occurred 4 weeks before surgery. A mean hemoglobin level of 14.0 g/dL was seen before donation, whereas the mean preoperative hemoglobin level decreased to 12.6 g/dL. We think that a preoperative autologous donation program leads to an increased risk of anemia before surgery.