Blood Transfusion, Coronary Bypass Grafting Surgery, and Late Survival: An Impossible Task Done Well

In this issue of The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, Schwann and colleagues 1 Schwann T.A. Vekstein A.M. Engoren M. et al. Perioperative anemia and transfusions and late mortality in coronary artery bypass patients. Ann Thorac Surg. 2023; 115: 759-770 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (1) Google Scholar used The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database merged with Medicare data for patients aged more than 65 years to answer an important question: what is the association between perioperative anemia and red blood cell transfusion and late survival after coronary artery bypass graft surgery? Their major findings revealed that red blood cell transfusion was not associated with improved survival regardless of the severity of perioperative anemia treated. They also found that transfusion was associated with worst survival, especially during the first 2 years after the procedure. The study is very well done and the findings are supported by the literature, with the caveat that the datasets used for the analysis have some inherent deficiencies that may limit the clarity of the findings. Perioperative Anemia and Transfusions and Late Mortality in Coronary Artery Bypass PatientsThe Annals of Thoracic SurgeryVol. 115Issue 3PreviewPerioperative anemia and transfusions are associated with adverse operative outcomes after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG). Their individual association with long-term outcomes is unclear. Full-Text PDF