bloodless surgery

Surgery performed without use (or with minimal use) of allogeneic transfusions and favouring pre-donation of blood from a patient for autologous transfusion during surgery, if needed. Bloodless surgery is of particular interest in the surgical management of Jehovah’s Witnesses who refuse blood transfusions on religious grounds, in whom severe intraoperative anaemia is the norm, but survivable.

Bloodless procedures
Cardiac catheterisation (laser and balloon angioplasty, radiofrequency ablation), atherectomy, imaging, haemodynamic evaluation, minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopy, lithotripsy, radiosurgery, stereotactic surgery), or other methods (e.g., pulse oximetry) that minimise the loss of blood.

Blood salvage manoeuvres
Preoperative autologous donation, intraoperative blood salvage, intraoperative haemodilution, volume expanders and other blood-conservation techniques, laser coagulators, exogenous erythropoietin.

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References in periodicals archive

The blood substitute also has important implications for chilled, bloodless surgery, possibly allowing for major surgery that requires little or no donated blood for transfusion.

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The preoperative consultations between PB and his surgeon could also have presented an opportunity to discuss "bloodless surgery centers," and for the surgeon to possibly provide referrals.

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"Bloodless surgery" may be a misnomer but minimally invasive neurosurgery is now possible due to recent advances in imaging and endoscopic technology, as Proctor and Black (Harvard Medical School) point out in introducing 20 contributed chapters.

Minimally invasive neurosurgery

Mr O'Farrell said that medical progress had been made in bloodless surgery, thanks to the stance of Witnesses around the world.

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Where the rights of Jehovah's Witness patients are respected, and their refusal of blood transfusion is seen as a challenge rather than an obstacle, great strides forward have been made in 'bloodless surgery' and medicine.

Are blood transfusions wrong?

Bloodless surgery is carried out without the need for any transfusions.

Bloodless op for Jehovahs

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