title: Current concepts and issues in blood management.
abstract: Blood management in orthopedic surgery is no longer an option; it is a requirement. The combination of patient desire to avoid transfusion, increasing evidence of multiple risks, decreasing blood supplies, and increasing costs mandate attention. This article addresses the balance of risk versus benefit in blood transfusion and presents a perioperative plan of blood management for patients undergoing orthopedic surgery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, St. Agnes HealthCare, Baltimore, Md, USA.
authors.forename: Richard K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Spence
mesh_terms: D016063:Blood Loss, Surgical / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001803:Blood Transfusion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D019637:Orthopedic Procedures; D012306:Risk; D065227:Transfusion Reaction; D014181:Transplantation Immunology