Normovolemic hemodilution in head and neck surgery

Area of Science:

• Medical Science
• Surgical Innovation
• Transfusion Medicine

Background:

• Homologous blood transfusions carry inherent risks.
• There is a growing need for safe alternatives to allogeneic blood transfusions.
• Understanding transfusion risks drives the search for viable patient blood management strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate normovolemic hemodilution as a pre-operative autologous blood management technique.
• To assess the efficacy of normovolemic hemodilution in improving tissue oxygenation and circulatory function.
• To determine the suitability of normovolemic hemodilution as an alternative to homologous transfusions in elective surgery.

Main Methods:

• Implementation of normovolemic hemodilution (a self-donor procedure) prior to elective surgery.
• Collection and analysis of data from 72 surgical procedures for head and neck neoplasms.
• Utilizing the hospital's transfusion service for the self-donor transfusion technique.

Main Results:

• Normovolemic hemodilution enhances oxygen availability despite reduced hemoglobin.
• Reduced blood viscosity leads to improved microcirculation and tissue oxygenation.
• The procedure demonstrated benefits in prophylaxis against deep vein thrombosis.

Conclusions:

• Normovolemic hemodilution is a highly effective and safe alternative to homologous blood transfusions.
• This method represents the treatment of choice for managing surgery-induced stress.
• The technique significantly improves tissue oxygenation and circulatory perfusion.