Systematic review and meta-analyses of tranexamic acid use for bleeding reduction in prostate surgery.

BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia have an increased incidence with aging. The most effective treatments are radical prostatectomy and transurethral resection of the prostate. To reduce perioperative bleeding in these surgeries, an approach is the use of tranexamic acid (TXA). Studies show that TXA is effective in reducing the blood loss and the need for transfusion in cardiac, orthopedic, and gynecological surgeries. In prostate surgeries, its efficacy and safety have not been established yet. STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine whether there are differences between TXA versus placebo in terms of intraoperative blood loss, transfusion requirements, hemoglobin levels and the incidence of thromboembolic events. DESIGN: Systematic review with meta-analyses. SETTING: Anesthesia for prostate surgery. PATIENTS: We searched the Medline, Cochrane, EBSCO, and Web of Science databases up to 2017 for randomized controlled trials that compared TXA administration with a control group in patients who submitted to prostate surgery. MEASUREMENTS: The primary outcomes were the intraoperative blood loss and transfusion rate. Data on hemoglobin levels and the incidence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) were also collected. RESULTS: Nine comparative studies were included in the meta-analyses. The estimated blood loss and transfusion rate were lower in patients receiving TXA, with a standardized mean difference of -1.93 (95% CI = -2.81 to -1.05, I2 = 96%), and a risk ratio of 0.61 (95% CI = 0.47 to 0.80, I2 = 0%), respectively. The hemoglobin levels and the incidence of DVT and PE did not differ between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: TXA reduced intraoperative blood loss and the need for transfusion, without increasing the risk of DVT and PE in prostate surgeries. Due to the limited number of studies and the high heterogeneity of the results, more clinical trials with a large number of patients are necessary to confirm these findings.

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy under neuraxial anesthesia compared with general anesthesia: Systematic review and meta-analyses.

BACKGROUND: Pneumoperitoneum during laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) can cause hypercapnia, hypoxemia, hemodynamic changes and shoulder pain. General anesthesia (GA) enables the control of intraoperative pain and ventilation. The need for GA has been questioned by studies suggesting that neuraxial anesthesia (NA) is adequate for LC. STUDY OBJECTIVE: To quantify the prevalence of intraoperative pain and to verify whether evidence on the maintenance of ventilation, circulation and surgical anesthesia during NA compared with GA is consistent. DESIGN: Systematic review with meta-analyses. SETTING: Anesthesia for laparoscopic cholecystectomy. PATIENTS: We searched Medline, Cochrane and EBSCO databases up to 2016 for randomized controlled trials that compared LC in the two groups under study, neuraxial (subarachnoid or epidural) and general anesthesia. MEASUREMENTS: The primary outcome was the prevalence of intraoperative pain referred to the shoulder in the NA group. Hemodynamic and respiratory outcomes and adverse effects in both groups were also collected. MAIN RESULTS: Eleven comparative studies were considered eligible. The pooled prevalence of shoulder pain was 25%. Intraoperative hypotension and bradycardia occurred more frequently in patients who received NA, with a risk ratio of 4.61 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.70-12.48, p=0.003) and 6.67 (95% CI 2.02-21.96, p=0.002), respectively. Postoperative nausea and vomiting was more prevalent in patients who submitted to GA. The prevalence of postoperative urinary retention did not differ between the techniques. Postoperative headache was more prevalent in patients who received NA, while the postoperative pain intensity was lower in this group. Performing meta-analyses on hypertension, hypercapnia and hypoxemia was not possible. CONCLUSIONS: NA as sole anesthetic technique, although feasible for LC, was associated with intraoperative pain referred to the shoulder, required anesthetic conversion in 3.4% of the cases and did not demonstrate evidence of respiratory benefits for patients with normal pulmonary function.