Impact of Intraoperative Blood Transfusion on Cerebral Injury in Pediatric Patients Undergoing Congenital Septal

Artem Ivkin1, Evgeny Grigoriev1, Alena Mikhailova1

  • 1Research Institute for Complex Issues of Cardiovascular Diseases, 650002 Kemerovo, Russia.

PubMed

Insights

Blood transfusions during pediatric heart surgery can increase the risk of brain injury. Higher red blood cell suspension volumes correlated with biomarkers of cerebral injury and inflammation.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Cardiology
  • Neuroinflammation
  • Transfusion Medicine

Background:

  • Donor blood components can trigger systemic inflammation and neuroinflammation.
  • This inflammation may lead to cerebral injury in pediatric patients.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the role of blood transfusion in cerebral injury development.
  • Investigate the link between transfusion and brain injury during congenital heart defect correction.

Main Methods:

  • Studied 78 pediatric patients (1-78 months old).
  • Measured biomarkers of cerebral injury and systemic inflammation at three time points: pre-surgery, post-cardiopulmonary bypass, and 16 hours post-surgery.
  • Analyzed correlation between transfusion volume and biomarkers.

Main Results:

  • S-100β protein showed a strong correlation with transfusion volume post-bypass (Rho = 0.48) and post-surgery (Rho = 0.36).
  • Neuron-specific enolase also correlated with transfusion volume post-bypass (Rho = 0.41).
  • Red blood cell suspension dosage correlated with cerebral injury and inflammatory biomarkers.

Conclusions:

  • Transfusion volume, specifically red blood cell suspension per kilogram, is linked to cerebral injury biomarkers.
  • Transfusion practices correlate with systemic inflammatory response markers.
  • Findings suggest a relationship between transfusion and neurological outcomes in pediatric cardiac surgery.