Hepatitis patients undergoing cardiac surgery: A single-center retrospective study

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Hepatology
• Transfusion Medicine

Background:

• Cardiac surgery in patients with hepatitis requires careful management of clinical variables.
• Understanding differences in outcomes between hepatitis B and C patients is crucial for surgical planning.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare clinical outcomes, particularly blood loss and drainage volume, in patients with hepatitis B versus hepatitis C undergoing cardiac surgery.
• To identify potential differences in transfusion requirements and organ function between the two hepatitis groups.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 150 hepatitis patients (127 hepatitis B, 23 hepatitis C) who underwent cardiac surgery.
• Collected and statistically analyzed preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative variables.
• Assessed differences in blood loss, drainage volume, transfusion rates, vasoactive drug use, and hepatic/renal function.

Main Results:

• No significant difference in intraoperative or total postoperative blood loss between hepatitis B and C groups.
• Hepatitis C patients had significantly lower minimum intraoperative hematocrit (P=.01).
• Hepatitis C patients showed a significantly higher proportion requiring red blood cell (RBC) transfusion (P=.043).

Conclusions:

• Hepatitis C patients undergoing cardiac surgery experience lower intraoperative hematocrit and increased need for RBC transfusions compared to hepatitis B patients.
• Overall blood loss is not significantly associated with hepatitis type in this cohort.
• Further research may be warranted to explore the underlying reasons for transfusion differences.