Study Shows Iron Transfusions Provide Better Outcomes Than Blood Transfusions for Patients With Preoperative Anemia

A new study demonstrates that “some patients with preoperative anemia have better outcomes if they get iron infusions before surgery rather than standard red blood cell transfusions.” Johns Hopkins Medicine has the news.

Iron is required to make “hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to organs throughout the body. If there is insufficient iron in a patient’s blood, the person becomes anemic, meaning there are not enough healthy red blood cells to deliver enough oxygen. This is particularly concerning for patients undergoing surgery because there is almost always some amount of blood loss during any procedure.”

Blood transfusions work, but they also carry risks, “including blood clots, hospital-acquired infections, allergic reactions and pulmonary complications.” For some patients, including those with sickle cell disease, it can also be difficult to find a donor match.

The research team analyzed information on 154,358 patients with iron-deficient anemia prior to surgery. These patients were sorted into groups who were “treated with iron preoperatively but not with a blood transfusion, and patients who received a preoperative blood transfusion but no iron infusion.”

Researchers found a “37% reduction in mortality and a 24% reduction in morbidity (complications) in patients who were treated with iron infusions compared with those treated with blood transfusions. This finding means that patients receiving iron infusions may recover more quickly and fully from their surgical procedures without any added complications that may arise from a blood transfusion.”