• Masaki Okuyama, Kimimasa Ikeda, Takashi Shibata, Yasuo Tsukahara, Masashi Kitada, and Takashi Shimano.
• Department of Surgery, Toyonaka Municipal Hospital, 4-14-1 Shibahara-cho, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-8565, Japan.
• Surg. Today. 2005 Jan 1; 35 (1): 36-40.

PurposeTo investigative whether giving an iron preparation to anemic patients before colorectal cancer surgery improves their anemia and reduces the need for intraoperative blood transfusion.MethodsAmong 569 patients who underwent colorectal cancer surgery between 1998 and 2003, we studied 32 anemic patients who received iron supplementation for at least 2 weeks preoperatively (group A) and 84 anemic patients who did not (group B). Anemia was defined as a hemoglobin (Hb) level at first presentation of ResultsThere were no significant differences between groups A and B in age, sex, surgical technique, tumor stage, and operating time. Their Hb and Ht values were similar at first presentation, but significantly different immediately before surgery (both P < 0.0001). There were no significant differences in intraoperative blood loss between the groups, but significantly fewer patients in group A needed an intraoperative blood transfusion (9.4% vs 27.4%, P < 0.05).ConclusionIron supplementation for at least 2 weeks before colorectal cancer surgery increases Hb and Ht values in anemic patients, and reduces the need for intraoperative transfusion.

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