Journal of shoulder and elbow surgery
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J Shoulder Elbow Surg · Nov 2015
Randomized Controlled TrialNeer Award 2015: A randomized, prospective evaluation on the effectiveness of tranexamic acid in reducing blood loss after total shoulder arthroplasty.
Tranexamic acid (TXA) is an antifibrinolytic agent that has been shown to significantly reduce blood loss and transfusion requirements after total knee and hip arthroplasty. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of TXA on postoperative blood loss after shoulder arthroplasty. ⋯ In this cohort of patients, those treated with TXA experienced a significantly lower amount of postoperative blood loss and a significantly smaller change in hemoglobin level compared with those treated with placebo. Further work is required to determine the effectiveness and clinical significance of TXA in reducing transfusion requirements in shoulder arthroplasty and, more specifically, shoulder arthroplasty performed for complicated patients or for trauma and fracture patients.