Non Blood Transfusion Limb Salvage Operation in the Distal Femur Osteosarcoma Patient: A Case Report / 대한골관절종양학회지

Limb salvage operations for osteosarcoma of the extremity usually consist of wide excision and skeletal reconstruction. Most osteosarcoma patients are anemic prior to the surgery as majority of them undergo preoperative neo-adjuvant chemotherapy; thus, it is necessary to treat anemia before and after the surgery since limb salvage operation tends to accompany significant blood loss. Despite the fact that blood transfusion has bad influence on prognosis, complication, and postoperative outcome of cancer patients, it is still considered as a standard management to fix anemia for limb salvage operations. We would like to present a case report in which the authors succeeded in performing limb salvage operations on patients with distal femur osteosarcoma without transfusion.

Clinical analysis of non-blood transfusion treatment in patients who refused a blood transfusion for obstetrical part / 대한산부인과학회지

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study is to analyze the clinical manifestation of obstetrical patients who refused transfusion of any blood component. Through this analysis, we could define the guideline of non-blood transfusion treatment during the obstetrical procedure. METHODS: 127 patients who visited our non-blood transfusion treatment center and had obstetrical procedures from 1 Jan. 2000 to 31 March 2006 participated in this study. They were retrospectively analyzed according to the following indexes; the reason of refusing blood transfusion, age, ratio of vaginal delivery to Cesarean section, comparison of hemoglobin level, volume of blood loss, presence of bloodless treatment, days of hospitalization, presence of blood transfusion, consequence of patient (including complications and deaths). Bloodless treatment at the hospital are medical method (recombinant human erythropoietin, Aprotinin, Hemocoagulase, Tranexamine acid, Venoferrum), Autotransfusion and Electrocauterization. RESULTS: Among 126 patients (except for 1 patient who was delivered at the other hospital), the vaginal delivery group consisted of 57, and the Cesarean operation group was 69. The most common cause of primary caesarean section was arrest disorder of cephalo-pelvic disproportion. Among 26 patients qualified for indication of transfusion, uterine atony had the highest number of patients at 16. Among the indication of transfusion, low hemoglobin level (< or =8.0 g/dL) after operation had the highest number of patients at 20. Patients qualified indication of transfusion had twice more blood loss (464.6+/-34.2 ml vs 920.5+/-214.2 ml) and two more days of hospitalization (7.6+/-0.5 day vs 9.7+/-0.6 day) compared with those of non-qualified for indication of transfusion. Nobody received direct transfusion of blood component. There were no death but acute renal failure in one patient, and DIC (disseminated intravascular coagulation) in another patient as complications. CONCLUSIONS: This study analyzed the clinical manifestations of patients who refused a blood transfusion in obstetrics. Especially, when the non-blood transfusion treatment was performed, which had been an issue in recent times, more active treatment showed less reduction of hemoglobin level than no treatment. This study also confirmed that bleeding patients can be treated by selective non-blood transfusion treatment.