Bloodless Surgery

[Phyllis Jean]

I have never seen the "blood issue" discussed in this forum. Has anyone had heart surgery without taking blood? I am scared of getting Hepatitis or even worse HIV from blood. Isn't it true that anybody can lose a pint or two of blood and still be OK? Are there non-blood expanders? Any comments or experiences would be appreciated. Sincerely, Phyllis

 

[Paul_R]

I had my surgery a month ago. I donated 2 units of my own blood, I had 3 more units donated by friends and another unit of platlets donated by a friend. My surgical report says that blood loss was nill and does not indicate if any of the units of my own blood was used. My ICU reports indicate that no blood products where given. However, I was a little anemic when I left the hospital and was told to take iron suplements 3 times a day for a month post op. This was my experience, I don't know if this is typical of others.

 

[Rich]

Phyllis Jean,
Besides donating your own blood there are other options as well.
When I had my surgery in '96 we used the Red Cross's dedicated donor system.
Blood donated by family and friends goes directly to you if needed.

 

[KathyH]

Hi, I had surgery in April valve and aneurysm repair. I did not get any blood. I was anemic post op and also took iron three times a day.
Kathy H

 

[ALCapshaw2]

My Surgeons discouraged me from donating my own blood both times, citing the 'ultra safety' of the donated blood supply and additional cost involved. Yep, it appears you have to PAY EXTRA to get your own blood back!

As it turned out, I was NOT given any blood supplements following either surgery. I WAS borderline anemic after each and had to take iron pills.

Bottom Line: Discuss this with you surgeon and get his recommendation.

'AL'

 

[bvdr]

I did not require blood with my MVR either. My hemoglobin was 16.6 pre-op and it dropped to 8.9 but I was never given blood. The equipment used in surgery does collect what you bleed and recycles it back to you so you are less likely to need blood products than surgery done years ago.

I do have confidence in the screening procedures done now on our blood supply so I really wasn't very concerned about the possibility of needing blood transfusions.

 

[labguides]

Our daughter required blood for her mitral valve repair -- 2 units of blood, 2 of platelets and 1 of plasma (I think that is right). She donated 2 units of blood (wanted to do more, but she had a bad cold prior to surgery), I donated 2 units and our son donated 2 units. My husband had Melanoma several years ago, so he was not allowed to donate. Her boyfriend could not donate for her as the future father of her children could not donate.

 

[tobagotwo]

I had a simple aortic valve replacement (Mosaic), without any aorta or root involvement.

I asked if I should donate blood for myself before the surgery. My surgeon looked at me like I had lost my senses. He said, "What for? You won't need any blood." I wondered if there was a little pride in his statement, so I waited until later to ask his staff.

His people were also thrown off by the question, and assured me that they couldn't think of a time when one of their patients required blood during the operation. As he was doing over 1,000 heart operations a year, I guess they would know.

Best wishes,

 

[Sherry]

Phyllis, I did require a unit of blood after my surgery. It just came from the bloodbank as I was not encouraged beforehand to have someone donate.

BTW, someone is discussing this same issue in the pre-surgery section.

 

[Glenda]

Hi Phyllis

Hi Phyllis

I had to have two units of blood and two units of platlets. The surgery still left me quite anemic. I have chronic myeloid leukemia and my oncologist had upped my leukemia medicine (Gleevec) to get me ready for the surgery and that's what probably dropped my platlets so low. It's been over four months since I've had surgery and I'm back up to normal now. I also had fluid retention problems with my right lung and had to have it drained twice. We finally figured out it was the Gleevec causing me to retain water. So I went off it for about four weeks and it worked, my lungs cleared up. This poision (medicine-Gleevec) that I have to take is keeping my leukemia under control but I wonder what else it is doing to my body. It's such a new drug that even the doctors don't really know anything about it.

 

[Shine_on_Syd]

They took blood out of me before the cooled down my heart and put it back in when the started the engine. My surgeon said he rarely needs to give patients units of blood.
Even if so the blood supply is very safe.

 

[Harpoon]

In the US, the blood supply is EXTREMELY safe. It's never perfect, nothing ever is, but you're probably more likely to die from complications during surgery than contract hepatitis really.

Ok, maybe that's a little extreme, but it's close.


I had a number of bleeding issues after surgery, a really rough time which was VERY much atypical of most people's experiences here. My wife donated but no one else could because they weren't matches.

I also got a lot of blood from other sources, most of which I just bled back out again.

I was feeling a little "ungrateful" at the time..... =Þ


Actually, I was comatose, again, a rather atypical experience for valve replacement.

As has already been stated here, a lot of patients can donate blood for themselves prior to surgery. It's up to the surgeon or your cardiologist to decide if you can do that, some people with heart problems can't donate because of the stress it puts on their heart. You may also have family members or close friends that can donate for you in advance, tagging the blood ONLY to be used for you if you need it AND for the most part, blood loss is kept to an absolute bare minimum anyways during surgery.

Nothing is truely "bloodless" either but there are a lot of surgical tools used to keep it to a minimum including cauterizing scalpels and other devices which create instant clots as they're used.

 

[Susan BAV]

Hi Phyllis -

I specifically wanted another transfusion-free surgery this time. There are non-blood expanders and several other things that a surgeon, experienced in transfusion-free treatment, can recommend. My highly recommended and well-respected surgeon said that, with an experienced surgeon, the larger problem with blood-loss is not usually during the surgery but afterward. And, in accordance with patient requests, he aggressively treats any potential post-op bleeding. He has had great success and a great deal of experience with this type of surgery, with a 0% mortality rate. (Sounded good to me !) One of the other, also highly recommended and well-respected, surgeons that I consulted with also performs transfusion-free OHS, reportedly even on [famous persons].