Direct Injection of Blood Products Versus Gelatin Sponge as a Technique for Local Hemostasis

To provide a method of reducing risk of minimally invasive procedures on patients with abnormal hemostasis and evaluate efficacy of direct fresh frozen plasma injection through a procedure needle tract compared to Gelfoam (gelatin sponge) administration.

Eighty patients with elevated international standardized ratio (INR) undergoing minimally invasive procedures using imaging guidance were selected retrospectively. Forty patients had received Gelfoam as a means of tract embolization during the procedure. The other 40 received local fresh frozen plasma (FFP) through the needle tract. The number of complications and clinically significant bleeding events were recorded. A threshold of 30 cc of blood loss after a procedure was used to identify excess bleeding.

No patients experienced clinically significant bleeding after administration of FFP. Five patients experienced postoperative drops in hemoglobin or hematomas after administration of Gelfoam.

Local injection of blood products can reduce postprocedure bleeding in patients undergoing minimally invasive procedures and provides a safe alternative to the use of synthetic fibrin plugs.