The Effect of Transfusion of Packed Red Blood Cells on Arterial Blood Gas Parameters in Patients Undergoing General Anesthesia for Elective Surgery

Transfusion of blood products is associated with a number of changes in metabolic parameters. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of transfusing packed red blood cells on arterial blood gas parameters in patients undergoing general anesthesia for elective surgery. Forty adult patients who underwent general anesthesia for elective surgeries and who received a 250 to 350 mL of packed cells were studied. The arterial samples were taken from patients before and after the transfusion. The results were presented as mean ± SD. Chi-square and paired sample t-tests were used for data analysis. There was no statistically significant difference between the two samples regarding arterial pH, base excess, PaO2, and PaCO2 before and after the transfusion. There was, however, a significant decline in the arterial bicarbonate concentration and buffer base after the transfusion. We, therefore, concluded that transfusion of packed red cells as much as 250 to 350 mL in those undergoing general anesthesia could not influence the blood gas parameters significantly.