title: Strategies to reduce the use of blood products:  a US perspective.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the recent developments in the strategies to reduce allogeneic blood transfusions with emphasis on the impact on clinical outcomes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Concerns over the safety, efficacy, and supply of allogeneic blood continue to necessitate its judicious use as the standard of care. Patient blood management is emerging as a multidisciplinary, multimodality strategy to address anemia and decrease bleeding with the goal of reduced transfusions and improved patient outcomes. Common risk factors for transfusion include anemia, blood loss, and inappropriate transfusion decisions. Several approaches are available to mitigate these. Recent data continue to support the effectiveness of various hematinics, hemostatic agents and devices, as well as intermittent discontinuation of anticoagulant therapy. Use of autotransfusion techniques, particularly cell salvage, is the other strategy with accumulating data supporting its safety and efficacy. Finally, implementation of evidence-based transfusion guidelines will help to target allogeneic blood to those patients who are likely to benefit from it and thus reduce or eliminate unnecessary exposure to blood.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patient blood management is the timely use of safe and effective medical and surgical techniques designed to prevent anemia and decrease bleeding in an effort to improve patient outcome.
authors: Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Englewood Hospital and Medical Center, Englewood, New Jersey 07631, USA. aryeh.shander@ehmc.com
authors: Aryeh
authors: A
authors: Shander
authors: Mazyar
authors: M
authors: Javidroozi
mesh_terms: D000740:Anemia / Q000517:prevention & control; D016063:Blood Loss, Surgical / Q000517:prevention & control; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D001804:Blood Transfusion, Autologous / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D061214:Patient Safety; D012307:Risk Factors; D065227:Transfusion Reaction; D014481:United States