Restrictive vs. Liberal Red Blood Cell Transfusion Strategy in Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction and Anemia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective: Anemia is frequent in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and the optimal red blood cell transfusion strategy for AMI patients with anemia is still controversial. We aimed to compare the efficacy of restrictive and liberal red cell transfusion strategies in AMI patients with anemia.Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Clinicaltrials.gov, from their inception until March 2021. Studies designed to compare the efficacy between restrictive and liberal red blood cell transfusion strategies in patients with AMI were included. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality, including overall mortality, in-hospital or follow-up mortality. Risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were presented and pooled by random-effects models.Results: The search yielded a total of 6,630 participants in six studies. A total of 2,008 patients received restrictive red blood cell transfusion while 4,622 patients were given liberal red blood cell transfusion. No difference was found in overall mortality and follow-up mortality between restrictive and liberal transfusion groups (RR = 1.07, 95% CI = 0.82–1.40, P = 0.62; RR = 0.89, 95% CI = 0.56–1.42, P = 0.62). However, restrictive transfusion tended to have a higher risk of in-hospital mortality compared with liberal transfusion (RR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.00–1.50, P = 0.05). No secondary outcomes, including follow-up reinfarction, stroke, and acute heart failure, differed significantly between the two groups. In addition, subgroup analysis showed no differences in overall mortality between the two groups based on sample size and design.Conclusion: Restrictive and liberal red blood cell transfusion have a similar effect on overall mortality and follow-up mortality in AMI patients with anemia. However, restrictive transfusion tended to have a higher risk of in-hospital mortality compared with liberal transfusion. The findings suggest that transfusion strategy should be further evaluated in future studies.

Using blood wisely in oncology patients: An institutional analysis of the Choosing Wisely Canada restrictive transfusion strategy guidelines.

10 Background: Numerous studies support the safety of single-unit red red blood cell (RBC) transfusions and restrictive pre-transfusion hemoglobin (Hg) thresholds (≤ 70-80 g/L) among diverse populations of hospitalized patients, including those with malignancies on myelosuppressive systemic therapy. Using Blood Wisely is a national Choosing Wisely Canada (CWC) initiative that challenges hospitals to benchmark themselves on evidence-informed restrictive transfusion strategies, with the aim to decrease inappropriate RBC transfusions in Canada. We assessed transfusion practices among oncology inpatients at BC Cancer Vancouver Centre as part of this initiative and performed an exploratory analysis among outpatients. Methods: BC Cancer Vancouver RBC transfusion records were obtained for the period of October 2019-September 2020. The percentage of single-unit transfusions and transfusions for Hg ≤ 80 g/L were measured, to assess adherence to CWC targets of ≥ 65% and ≥ 80%, respectively, for these metrics. Univariate analyses were used to compare treatment variables and transfusion outcomes. Results: During the 1-year audit period, 120 inpatient and 586 outpatient RBC transfusions occurred. For inpatient transfusions, 40.8% (n = 49) were single-unit and 79.2% (n = 95) were for Hg ≤ 80 g/L. For outpatient transfusions, 11.8% (n = 69) were single-unit and 65.7% (n = 304) were for Hg ≤ 80 g/L. Outpatients and patients with solid malignancies were more likely to receive multiple-unit transfusions, compared to inpatients (p < 0.001) and patients with hematological malignancies (p < 0.001), respectively. Patients with solid malignancies and those on active treatment were more likely to be transfused when Hg was > 80 g/L, compared to patients with hematological malignancies (p = 0.004) and those off treatment (p = 0.003), respectively. Multiple RBC units were more likely to transfused when the interval from pre-transfusion bloodwork to receipt of transfusion was > 3 days (p = 0.029). Conclusions: A high rate of inappropriate RBC transfusions are being ordered for oncology patients at our institution, in discordance with CWC restrictive transfusion strategy guidelines. Quality improvement interventions are planned to adopt best practices in transfusion medicine in this high-use population.[Table: see text]

Seeking Strategies to Optimize Blood Utilization: The Preliminary Experience with Implementing a Patient Blood Management Program in a Greek Tertiary Hospital

Objectives: Our aim was to assess blood utilization after implementation of a patient blood management (PBM) program in a Greek tertiary hospital. Methods: An electronic transfusion request form and a prospective audit of transfusion practice were implemented. After the one-year implementation period, a retrospective review was performed to assess transfusion practice in medical patients. Results: Pre-PBM, a total of 9478 RBC units were transfused (mean: 1.75 units per patient) compared with 9289 transfused units (mean: 1.57 units per patient) post-PBM. Regarding the post-PBM period, the mean hemoglobin (Hb) level of the 3099 medical patients without comorbidities transfused was 7.19 ± 0.79 gr/dL. Among them, 2065 (66.6%) had Hb levels >7.0 gr/dL, while 167 (5.3%) had Hb levels >8.0 gr/dL. In addition, 331 (25.3%) of the transfused patients with comorbidities had Hb >8.0 gr/dL. The Hb transfusion thresholds significantly differed across the clinics (p < 0.001), while 21.8% of all medical non-bleeding patients received more than one RBC unit transfusion. Conclusion: A poor adherence with the restrictive transfusion threshold of 7.0 gr/dL was observed. The adoption of a less strict threshold might be a temporary step to allow physicians to become familiar with the program and be informed on the safety and advantages of the restrictive transfusion strategy.

Restrictive versus liberal red cell transfusion strategies in patients with acute myocardial infarction: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundAnemia is frequent in patients with acute myocardial infarction(AMI), and the optimal red blood cell transfusion strategy for patients with AMI and anemia is still controversial. We aimed to compare the efficacy of restrictive and liberal red cell transfusion strategies in patients with AMI and anemia.MethodsWe systematically searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Clinicaltrials.gov, from their inception until March 2021. Inclusion criteria were clinical trials that compared the efficacy of restrictive and liberal transfusion strategies in patients with AMI and anemia on all-cause mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality, including overall mortality, in-hospital, or follow-up mortality. Risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were presented and pooled by random-effects models. ResultsThe search yielded a total of 6630 participants in six studies. Among the included patients, the average age ranged from 69.0 to 79.5 years and 2950 (44.5%) were men. A total of 2008 patients received restrictive red blood transfusion while 4622 patients were given liberal red blood transfusion. No difference was found in overall mortality and follow-up mortality between restrictive and liberal blood transfusion groups (RR=1.07, 95% CI=0.82–1.40, P=0.62; RR=0.89, 95% CI=0.56–1.42, P=0.62). However, restrictive transfusion was associated with a higher risk of in-hospital mortality compared with liberal transfusion (RR=1.22, 95% CI=1.00–1.50, P=0.05). No secondary outcomes, including follow-up reinfarction, stroke, and acute heart failure, differed significantly between the two groups. In addition, subgroup analysis showed no differences in overall mortality between the two groups based on sample size and design.ConclusionRestrictive and liberal red blood transfusion have a similar effect on overall mortality and follow-up mortality in patients with AMI and anemia. However, restrictive transfusion was associated with a higher risk of in-hospital mortality compared with liberal transfusion. The findings suggest that transfusion strategy should be evaluated in the more future researches.

Preoperative anemia and female gender as risk factors for transfusion in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting with a restrictive transfusion strategy

Background: Red blood cell (RBC) transfusion increases morbidity and mortality after cardiac surgery. Despite the use of patient blood management methods, blood transfusions may still be needed in cardiac surgery. This study aims to determine the risk factors for blood transfusions in isolated coronary bypass graft surgery with the use of a restrictive transfusion strategy along with individualized patient blood management. Methods: A total of 198 consecutive patients (28 females, 170 males; age range 38–87) who underwent isolated CABG surgery in single private hospital using a restrictive transfusion strategy between April 2015 and October 2020 were included in the study. Patients were divided into two groups: with RBC transfusion and without RBC transfusion. Preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative values were compared between groups. The risk factors for transfusion and transfusion probability were analyzed. Results: Preoperative hematocrit level and female gender (OR: 0.752; 95% CI 0.639–0.884; p = 0.001; OR: 7.874; 95% CI 1.678–36.950; p = 0.009, respectively) were the statistically significant independent risk factors for red blood cell transfusion. In female patients, the RBC transfusion probability was 61.08% when the preoperative hematocrit was 30%. The intensive care unit and hospital stay were longer in the blood transfusion group. Conclusions: The risk factors for RBC transfusion were preoperative anemia and female gender in isolated CABG surgery with restrictive blood transfusion strategies. Keywords: anemia, blood transfusion, coronary artery bypass, patient blood management, restrictive blood transfusion

Effects of controlled hypotension with restrictive transfusion on intraoperative blood loss and systemic oxygen metabolism in elderly patients who underwent lumbar fusion

Background The effects of restrictive fluid therapy combined with controlled hypotension in the elderly on systemic oxygen metabolism and renal function are clinical concerns. The aim of this study was to evaluate blood loss, oxygen metabolism, and renal function in different levels of controlled hypotension induced by intravenous nitroglycerin, in combination with limited infusion, in elderly patients undergoing posterior lumbar fusion. Methods A total of 40 patients, aged 60–75 with ASA grade II or III, who were planned for posterior lumbar fusion were randomly allocated into two groups: experimental group [target mean arterial pressure 65 mmHg (MAP 65) or control group (MAP 75)]. Indicators for blood loss, hemodynamic, systemic oxygen metabolism, and renal function evaluation index were recorded before operation (T0), 1 h after induced hypotension (T1), 2 h after hypotension (T2), and in recovery (T3). We compared changes in these parameters between groups to evaluate the combined effects of controlled hypotension with restrictive infusion. Results CI, DO2I, and VO2I were lower in both groups at T1–T3 compared with T0 (p < 0.05). DO2I and VO2I in the MAP 65 group were lower than the MAP 75 group after operation. In both groups, SCysC increased at T1, T2, and T3 (p < 0.05) compared with T0. Conclusions Restrictive transfusion and control MAP at 65 mmHg can slightly change in renal function and reduce the risk of insufficient oxygen supply and importantly have no significant effect on blood loss and postoperative complications. Trial registration ChiCTR-INR-16008153. Registered on 25 March 2016.

Restrictive Transfusion Strategy after Cardiac Surgery

Background Recent guidelines on transfusion in cardiac surgery suggest that hemoglobin might not be the only criterion to trigger transfusion. Central venous oxygen saturation (Svo2), which is related to the balance between tissue oxygen delivery and consumption, may help the decision process of transfusion. We designed a randomized study to test whether central Svo2–guided transfusion could reduce transfusion incidence after cardiac surgery. Methods This single center, single-blinded, randomized controlled trial was conducted on adult patients after cardiac surgery in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a tertiary university hospital. Patients were screened preoperatively and were assigned randomly to two study groups (control or Svo2) if they developed anemia (hemoglobin less than 9 g/dl), without active bleeding, during their ICU stay. Patients were transfused at each anemia episode during their ICU stay except the Svo2 patients who were transfused only if the pretransfusion central Svo2 was less than or equal to 65%. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients transfused in the ICU. The main secondary endpoints were (1) number of erythrocyte units transfused in the ICU and at study discharge, and (2) the proportion of patients transfused at study discharge. Results Among 484 screened patients, 100 were randomized, with 50 in each group. All control patients were transfused in the ICU with a total of 94 transfused erythrocyte units. In the Svo2 group, 34 (68%) patients were transfused (odds ratio, 0.031 [95% CI, 0 to 0.153]; P &lt; 0.001 vs. controls), with a total of 65 erythrocyte units. At study discharge, eight patients of the Svo2 group remained nontransfused and the cumulative count of erythrocyte units was 96 in the Svo2 group and 126 in the control group. Conclusions A restrictive transfusion strategy adjusted with central Svo2 may allow a significant reduction in the incidence of transfusion. Editor’s Perspective What We Already Know about This Topic What This Article Tells Us That Is New