ferric-oxide--saccharated and Postpartum-Hemorrhage

To assess whether a policy of routine administration of high-dose tranexamic acid (TA) at the diagnosis of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) reduces blood loss after vaginal birth.. This controlled single-center before-and-after study of all women with PPH ≥ 500 ml after vaginal birth took place from January 2011 through March 2012; the control group included those seen from January 2011 through August 2011, and the case patients those from September 2011 through March 2012. Our protocol for the management of PPH was modified effective September 2011 to include administration of high-dose TA (4 g of TA intravenously then 1 g/h for 6 h) once blood loss reached 800 ml. Our primary objective was to assess the efficacy of this policy in reducing blood loss in PPH.. Maternal characteristics did not differ between the two groups. Mean estimated blood loss was not significantly lower in the TA group (n = 138) than in the control group (n = 151) (respectively, 915.7 ± 321 ml versus 944.8 ± 313.8 ml; p = 0.47). The difference between pre- and post-delivery hemoglobin levels were lower in the TA group (-2.6 g/dl ± 1.2 versus -2.9 g/dl ± 1.3; p = 0.09), but it was not significant. Postpartum iron sucrose injections were significantly less frequent in the TA than the control group (2.2% versus 9.9%; p < 0.05).. A policy of high-dose TA in PPH after vaginal deliveries was not associated with a significant reduction of blood loss.

Topics: Adult; Antifibrinolytic Agents; Female; Ferric Compounds; Ferric Oxide, Saccharated; France; Glucaric Acid; Hematinics; Humans; Postpartum Hemorrhage; Pregnancy; Prevalence; Thromboembolism; Tranexamic Acid; Treatment Outcome; Young Adult

For reasons of religious belief, Jehova's Witnesses do not accept blood transfusions or the infusion of blood products. In situations in which severe, life-threatening anemia develops, patient refusal to receive a transfusion can create serious ethical and legal problems. The principle of patient autonomy, which implies the freedom to accept or reject treatment, comes into conflict with the physician's obligation to safeguard the patient's life using all means possible. We report 2 cases of severe anemia in Jehova's Witnesses. One was due to menorrhagia and the other to postpartum bleeding. The physician should be aware of alternatives to infusion of blood products and know how to cope with an unexpected critical event in these patients. The measures we took were effective in our patients. In the case of menorrhagia, hormone treatment is effective when the woman wishes to preserve the ability to conceive and avoid surgery (endometrial ablation and hysterectomy). In postpartum bleeding refractory to conservative treatment, selective embolization of bleeding vessels may make it unnecessary to resort to more aggressive treatment, such as obstetric hysterectomy.

Topics: Adult; Anemia; Anti-Anxiety Agents; Anticoagulants; Cervix Uteri; Combined Modality Therapy; Contraceptives, Oral, Hormonal; Dalteparin; Embolization, Therapeutic; Erythropoietin; Female; Ferric Compounds; Ferric Oxide, Saccharated; Glucaric Acid; Humans; Immobilization; Jehovah's Witnesses; Menorrhagia; Oxygen Inhalation Therapy; Parenteral Nutrition; Postpartum Hemorrhage; Pregnancy; Recombinant Proteins; Thromboembolism; Treatment Refusal; Young Adult