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How to Perform Surgery Without Blood Transfusions

It is possible and practical to perform some of the most difficult surgeries without blood transfusions. Technique and technology have advanced in the performance of surgeries and bloodless surgery centers have flourished in the United States.



The spread of AIDS through blood transfusion and the risk of contracting potentially deadly hepatitis have made bloodless surgery a popular choice.



The use of non-blood volume expanders, iron therapy infusions, cauterization, lowering the blood pressure in patients and the use of auto-transfusion devices, which recirculate your own blood that was normally lost during an operation have made bloodless surgery safe and practical.

Things You'll Need

  • Non-blood volume expander
  • Iron transfusion solutions
  • Interoperative blood salvage device
  • Electrocautery surgical unit
  • Hypotensive anesthesic pharmaceuticals
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Instructions

  1. Effective Surgical Techniques Without Blood Transfusions

    • 1

      Infuse the patient with non-blood volume expanders instead of blood transfusions during surgery. The simplest non-blood volume expander is saline (salt) solution, which is a crystalloid solution. It is inexpensive and it is compatible with our blood. Lactated Ringer's solution is another option, also a crystalloid solution.

      Some other non-blood volume expanders are dextran, Haemaccel and Hetastarch (HES).

      There are advantages to using these solutions. They are non-toxic, inexpensive and are easily obtained. They can be stored at room temperature and are risk-free as far as the transmission of disease, which so readily takes place with blood transfusions.

    • 2

      Recirculate the lost blood during surgery with an intraoperative blood salvage (IBS) auto-transfusion device. In the same way that a dentist places a suction tube in your mouth to draw out your excess saliva, a blood salvage device, or cell saver, sucks out blood lost during an operation. In the case of the IBS, the blood is recirculated back into your body so that very little blood is lost during surgery.

    • 3
      Electrocautery surgical tools used during surgery burns tissue and seals it, which minimizes blood loss.

      Perform surgery using an electrocautery device. This is a surgical tool which is heated with electric current, which cauterizes, or burns, vessel tissue, thus sealing the area and minimizing blood loss. It is safe and the equipment is relatively inexpensive.

    • 4

      Give patients iron preparations (injected into the muscles or veins), which aid the body in making red blood cells at a rate three to four times faster than usual. Iron transports oxygen to tissues through the hemoglobin in red blood cells.

    • 5

      Lower the body temperature through the administering of specific drugs during surgery. This aids in minimizing blood loss. This technique can be applied only in certain situations.

    • 6

      Administer hypotensive anesthesia, which lowers blood pressure. The University of Pisa states, "Hypotensive anesthesia is a technique used intraoperatively that helps to minimize surgical blood loss, thereby decreasing the need for blood transfusion. Its careful application can be done safely in most patients, including children, and for a variety of surgical procedures." The most common agents for this technique are sodium nitroprusside (SNP), nitroglycerin (NTG), and trimethaphan.

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