• Katherine M Steffen, Marisa Tucci, Allan Doctor, Ron Reeder, J Jaime Caro, Jennifer A Muszynski, Philip C Spinella, and Pediatric Critical Care Blood Research Network (BloodNet) subgroup of the Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigators (PALISI) Network.
• Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA.
• Pediatr Crit Care Me. 2023 Feb 1; 24 (2): 849284-92.

ObjectivesGuidelines recommend against RBC transfusion in hemodynamically stable (HDS) children without cardiac disease, if hemoglobin is greater than or equal to 7 g/dL. We sought to assess the clinical and economic impact of compliance with RBC transfusion guidelines.DesignA nonprespecified secondary analysis of noncardiac, HDS patients in the randomized trial Age of Blood in Children (NCT01977547) in PICUs. Costs analyzed included ICU stay and physician fees. Stabilized inverse propensity for treatment weighting was used to create a cohort balanced with respect to potential confounding variables. Weighted regression models were fit to evaluate outcomes based on guideline compliance.SettingFifty international tertiary care centers.PatientsCritically ill children 3 days to 16 years old transfused RBCs at less than or equal to 7 days of ICU admission. Six-hundred eighty-seven subjects who met eligibility criteria were included in the analysis.InterventionsInitial RBC transfusions administered when hemoglobin was less than 7 g/dL were considered "compliant" or "non-compliant" if hemoglobin was greater than or equal to 7 g/dL.Measurements And Main ResultsFrequency of new or progressive multiple organ system dysfunction (NPMODS), ICU survival, and associated costs. The hypothesis was formulated after data collection but exposure groups were masked until completion of planned analyses. Forty-nine percent of patients (338/687) received a noncompliant initial transfusion. Weighted cohorts were balanced with respect to confounding variables (absolute standardized differences < 0.1). No differences were noted in NPMODS frequency (relative risk, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.61-1.22; p = 0.4). Patients receiving compliant transfusions had more ICU-free days (mean difference, 1.73; 95% CI, 0.57-2.88; p = 0.003). Compliance reduced mean costs in ICU by $38,845 U.S. dollars per patient (95% CI, $65,048-$12,641).ConclusionsDeferring transfusion until hemoglobin is less than 7 g/dL is not associated with increased organ dysfunction in this population but is independently associated with increased likelihood of live ICU discharge and lower ICU costs.Copyright © 2023 by the Society of Critical Care Medicine and the World Federation of Pediatric Intensive and Critical Care Societies.

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