Increased Demand for Blood Transfusion in Cardiac Surgery, Simple but Unsolved Common Problem

Background: Despite the general concern about the safety of blood transfusion and mounting evidence exist for more restrictive practice; there is no national consensus guideline and uniformity of institutions for blood transfusion associated with coronary artery bypass graft surgery in Iran. The aim of this study is an assessment of current transfusion practice and compares it with one decade ago. Materials and Methods: The authors retrospectively analyzed the data of all patients undergoing elective surgery (first time operation) during one year, in two different decade interval (2003 and 2015) in a tertiary heart center. Results: A total of 801 patients were evaluated and compared (n=249 in 2015, n=552 in 2003). There is a significant increase in the use of blood transfusion in both operating room and at ICU than the last decade (60.6% vs. 42.4%, p<0.001, and 54.4% vs. 39.9%, p <0.001, respectively). The incidence of preoperative anemia was four times higher in patients who received transfusion, compared to those who did not, in both groups. With compared to the past, the patients are older, have less preoperative hematocrit, more diabetic, more need to intra-aortic balloon pump, shorter operation time, and less postoperative bleeding. Conclusion: With advanced knowledge about transfusion complications and conservative approach to transfusion practice, the need to blood transfusion is increased in current cardiac operations in our center, due to association of more co-morbidity.