• About
  • Masthead
  • License Content
  • Advertise
  • Submit Press Release
  • RSS/Email List
  • Write for us
  • Contact us
2 Minute Medicine
No Result
View All Result

No products in the cart.

SUBSCRIBE
  • Specialties
    • Cardiology
    • Chronic Disease
    • Dermatology
    • Emergency
    • Endocrinology
    • Gastroenterology
    • Imaging and Intervention
    • Infectious Disease
    • Nephrology
    • Neurology
    • Obstetrics
    • Oncology
    • Ophthalmology
    • Pediatrics
    • Preclinical
    • Psychiatry
    • Public Health
    • Pulmonology
    • Rheumatology
    • Surgery
  • Wellness
  • Classics™
    • 2MM+ Online Access
    • Paperback and Ebook
  • Rewinds
  • Visual
  • Partners
    • License Content
    • Submit Press Release
    • Advertise with Us
  • AccountLog-in/out
    • Subscribe
    • Sign-in
    • My account
2 Minute Medicine
  • Specialties
    • Cardiology
    • Chronic Disease
    • Dermatology
    • Emergency
    • Endocrinology
    • Gastroenterology
    • Imaging and Intervention
    • Infectious Disease
    • Nephrology
    • Neurology
    • Obstetrics
    • Oncology
    • Ophthalmology
    • Pediatrics
    • Preclinical
    • Psychiatry
    • Public Health
    • Pulmonology
    • Rheumatology
    • Surgery
  • Wellness
  • Classics™
    • 2MM+ Online Access
    • Paperback and Ebook
  • Rewinds
  • Visual
  • Partners
    • License Content
    • Submit Press Release
    • Advertise with Us
  • AccountLog-in/out
    • Subscribe
    • Sign-in
    • My account
SUBSCRIBE
2 Minute Medicine
Subscribe
Home All Specialties Surgery

Tranexamic acid during joint surgery may reduce need for blood transfusions

byAdarsh ManjunathandRavi Shah
August 12, 2014
in Surgery
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

1. Patients receiving tranexamic acid during total hip and knee arthroplasty had lower rates of blood transfusion. 

2. Tranexamic acid use was associated with a shorter hospital stay and lower hospital cost. 

Evidence Rating Level: 2 (Good)       

Study Rundown: Perioperative blood loss and blood transfusions after orthopedic surgery are a concerning complication for which various preventative strategies exist. One pharmacologic approach is the use of tranexamic acid, an antifibrinolytic drug that inhibits clot breakdown by reducing the binding of plasminogen to fibrin. This study was conducted to determine the effectiveness and safety of tranexamic acid use during orthopedic surgery. It looked at patients undergoing total hip or knee arthroplasty in U.S. hospitals between 2006 and 2012. During this time period, perioperative use of tranexamic acid increased from nearly 0% to over 11%. Patients who received tranexamic acid had significantly lower rates of transfusion, thromboembolic complications, acute renal failure, and combined complications compared to patients not receiving tranexamic acid. Further statistical analyses showed that tranexamic acid decreased the need for blood transfusions by 69% without increasing complication rates.

A major strength of this study is its large sample size, since previous studies confirming the effectiveness of tranexamic acid were too small to study safety concerns regarding rare complications. Additionally, there was a high degree of external validity given design as a population based analysis reflective of real world practice. Its limitations include a lack of detailed clinical information to determine the trigger for the transfusion, residual confounding, and the study of complications that only occurred during the patients’ hospital stay.

Click to read the study, published today in the BMJ

Click to read an accompanying editorial in the BMJ

RELATED REPORTS

Association of prehospital plasma transfusion with survival in trauma patients with hemorrhagic shock when transport times are longer than 20 minutes

Data supports limiting blood transfusions for moderate anemia

Blood transfusions from ever-pregnant donors may increase mortality in male patients

Relevant Reading: Alternative procedures for reducing allogeneic blood transfusion in elective orthopedic surgery

In-Depth [retrospective cohort]: This study was a retrospective, population based analysis of over 870,000 patients in the Premier Perspective database who underwent total hip or knee arthroplasty at 510 U.S. hospitals between 2006 and 2012. The authors determined that patients who received tranexamic acid on the day of surgery had lower rates of allogeneic or autologous transfusions (7.7 vs. 20.1%, p<0.001), thromboembolic complications (0.6% vs. 0.8%, p=0.0057), combined complications including cerebrovascular events, myocardial infarction, and in-hospital mortality (1.9% vs. 2.6%, p<0.001), and admission to an intensive care unit (3.1% vs. 7.5%, p<0.001) compared to patients not receiving tranexamic acid. Furthermore, the cost of hospital stay was less in the group receiving the drug ($14,890 vs. $15,110, p<0.001). Multivariable logistic regression models demonstrated that tranexamic acid use was associated with up to a 69% decreased need for blood transfusions (odds ratio varied 0.31-0.38 depending on dose category) with no significantly increased risk of thromboembolic complications, acute renal failure, combined complications, or admission to an intensive care unit. In particular, 2000mg tranexamic acid was found to have the best effectiveness and safety profile. In addition, the authors performed a propensity score analysis in which 5,486 patients receiving the drug were matched to controls who did not receive the drug, and found results that confirmed the effectiveness of tranexamic acid in reducing the need for blood transfusions without increasing the risk of complications.

More from this author: Smoking bans in prisons associated with reduced prisoner mortality, Over half of Viagra in Netherland’s sewage unaccounted for by legal dispensing 

Image: PD

©2012-2014 2minutemedicine.com. All rights reserved. No works may be reproduced without expressed written consent from 2minutemedicine.com. Disclaimer: We present factual information directly from peer reviewed medical journals. No post should be construed as medical advice and is not intended as such by the authors, editors, staff or by 2minutemedicine.com. PLEASE SEE A HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IN YOUR AREA IF YOU SEEK MEDICAL ADVICE OF ANY SORT. 

Tags: transfusion
Previous Post

Perioperative atrial fibrillation linked to increased long-term risk of stroke

Next Post

Patient lacking apolipoprotein E has altered lipid metabolism without neurocognitive or visual defects

RelatedReports

Ticagrelor reversal agent provides immediate and sustained effect
Emergency

Association of prehospital plasma transfusion with survival in trauma patients with hemorrhagic shock when transport times are longer than 20 minutes

December 31, 2019
No association found between length of storage for transfused red blood cells and patient mortality
Cardiology

Data supports limiting blood transfusions for moderate anemia

December 18, 2018
History of maternal anorexia linked to small infant size
Emergency

Blood transfusions from ever-pregnant donors may increase mortality in male patients

October 20, 2017
Cardiac biomarkers unnecessarily ordered in emergency departments
Weekly Rewinds

2 Minute Medicine Rewind December 25, 2016

December 26, 2016
Next Post
Pre-operative transcranial magnetic stimulation useful for language mapping

Patient lacking apolipoprotein E has altered lipid metabolism without neurocognitive or visual defects

Women electing abortion more likely to be victims of domestic violence

Medications for premature deliveries underutilized in developing world

Updated USPSTF guidelines favor treatment of mild gestational diabetes

Lifetime diabetes risk rises as incidence increases and mortality decreases

License Our Award-Winning Physician-Written Medical News and Visual Abstracts

2 Minute Medicine is the leading authoritative medical news licensing service, and the only with reports written by practicing doctors.

LICENSE CONTENT

Get 2MM+ Premium Access

No ads & unlimited access to all current reports, over 9000 searchable archived reports, visual abstracts, Weekly Rewinds, and the online edition of The Classics Series™ textbook.

Subscription Options
2 Minute Medicine

2 Minute Medicine® is an award winning, physician-run, expert medical media company. Our content is curated, written and edited by practicing health professionals who have clinical and scientific expertise in their field of reporting. Our editorial management team is comprised of highly-trained MD physicians. Join numerous brands, companies, and hospitals who trust our licensed content.

Recent Reports

  • Pelvic lymph node radiotherapy and androgen deprivation therapy augment progression-free status following prostatectomy
  • Operating the day after performing surgery the previous night not associated with adverse patient outcomes
  • Gratitude-focused writing may improve mental wellness during periods of chronic stress
License Content
Terms of Use | Disclaimer
Cookie Policy
Privacy Statement (EU)
Disclaimer

© 2021 2 Minute Medicine, Inc. - Physician-written medical news.

  • Specialties
    • Cardiology
    • Chronic Disease
    • Dermatology
    • Emergency
    • Endocrinology
    • Gastroenterology
    • Imaging and Intervention
    • Infectious Disease
    • Nephrology
    • Neurology
    • Obstetrics
    • Oncology
    • Ophthalmology
    • Pediatrics
    • Preclinical
    • Psychiatry
    • Public Health
    • Pulmonology
    • Rheumatology
    • Surgery
  • Wellness
  • Classics™
    • 2MM+ Online Access
    • Paperback and Ebook
  • Rewinds
  • Visual
  • Partners
    • License Content
    • Submit Press Release
    • Advertise with Us
  • Account
    • Subscribe
    • Sign-in
    • My account

© 2021 2 Minute Medicine, Inc. - Physician-written medical news.