The Journal of surgical research
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Meta Analysis
The use of tranexamic acid to reduce blood loss and transfusion in major orthopedic surgery: a meta-analysis.
Conflicting reports have been published regarding the effect of tranexamic acid (TXA) on reducing blood loss and transfusion in patients undergoing orthopedic surgery. We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of TXA treatment in reducing blood loss and transfusion in major orthopedic surgery. ⋯ TXA significantly reduced blood loss and blood transfusion requirements in patients undergoing orthopedic surgery, and did not appear to increase the risk of DVT.
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The clinical significance of sternal fractures (SFs) after blunt trauma is heavily debated. We aimed to test the hypothesis that isolated SF is not associated with significant morbidity or mortality. ⋯ SFs occur in 3.7% of victims after MVC. With isolated SF, the mortality rate is low (3.5%); the tendency for poorer outcomes is most heavily influenced by associated injuries (pulmonary contusions, other thoracic fractures), complications (cardiac arrest, pulmonary embolism, acute respiratory distress syndrome), comorbidities (currently on or requiring dialysis, residual neurologic deficit from stroke), and lack of insurance.
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Although hyperglycemia has been associated with poor postoperative outcomes, preoperative hyperglycemia is not used as a screening tool in patients without diabetes. We evaluated preoperative glucose as a marker for postoperative outcomes in patients without diabetes to assess its usefulness as a potential screening tool. ⋯ In patients without known diabetes, preoperative glucose is a significant marker for postoperative complications even at moderate levels of hyperglycemia. Some of these patients likely had prediabetes or unrecognized diabetes at the time of surgery. Further studies are needed to determine whether such screening and follow-up of preoperative hyperglycemia in all patients would be effective in lowering complication rates.
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ischemic preconditioning (IPC) protects against liver ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. The mechanism involves nitric oxide metabolism but the importance of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) has not been established. Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) protects against liver IR but it is unclear if this depends on nitric oxide synthase. ⋯ This study developed and used an eNOS-/- model to demonstrate that eNOS mediates protection against liver IR injury by IPC. The eNOS expression and activity and HO-1 expression are increased independently in liver IPC and IR, with HO-1 expression increased in the later stages of IPC and IR.