Strategies for minimizing the use of allogeneic blood during orthopedic surgery

Selected orthopedic surgical procedures, such as total joint arthroplasty and spinal instrumentation, have some of the highest perioperative transfusion rates of all surgical procedures. Blood transfusions carry the risk of complications, including the transmission of disease, immunomodulation, and hemolytic and non-hemolytic reactions. Strategies that reduce or remove the risk of allogeneic transfusion include preoperative autologous donation, acute normovolemic hemodilution, perioperative cell salvage techniques, deliberate hypotension, and pharmacologic interventions. This paper will review the current status of these therapies in the orthopedic surgical patient.