Considerations regarding major bleeding after cardiac transplantation

Abstract

Postoperative bleeding is one of the most frequent complications after cardiac surgery, leading to longer stays in the intensive care unit (ICU) and the hospital as well as increased morbidity and mortality. We designed an observational prospective study to evaluate early complications after cardiac transplantation, focusing on major bleeding and transfusion requirements. We also evaluated whether massive transfusion was related to increased morbidity and mortality. In patients who received ≥6 blood units, we observed significant differences regarding the need for continuous renal replacement techniques (50% vs 12.5%; P=.01) and ICU mortality (33.3% vs 4%; P=.01). This difference in mortality was also observed when comparing plasma transfusion requirements (35.3% vs 9.4%; P=.04). The overall mortality rate was 24.50%, showing significant differences in patients with massive transfusion (83.3% vs 37.8%; P=.008). In conclusion, perioperative bleeding and massive transfusion were associated with increased morbidity and mortality in this group of patients, which may prompt a review of surgical procedures and the introduction of new techniques, such as thromboelastography.