title: Utility of noninvasive transcutaneous measurement of postoperative hemoglobin in total joint arthroplasty patients.
abstract: This study prospectively evaluated the clinical utility of a noninvasive transcutaneous device for postoperative hemoglobin measurement in 100 total hip and knee arthroplasty patients. A protocol to measure hemoglobin noninvasively, prior to venipuncture, successfully avoided venipuncture in 73% of patients. In the remaining 27 patients, there were a total of 48 venipunctures performed during the postoperative hospitalization period due to reasons including transcutaneous hemoglobin measurement less than or equal to 9 g/dL (19), inability to obtain a transcutaneous hemoglobin measurement (8), clinical signs of anemia (3), and noncompliance with the study protocol (18). Such screening protocols may provide a convenient and cost-effective alternative to routine venipuncture for identifying patients at risk for blood transfusion after elective joint arthroplasty.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stoesz
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Kristin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Wesley
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Young-Min
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Andrew A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Freiberg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019644:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip; D019645:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee; D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis / Q000379:methods; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures; D005260:Female; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011446:Prospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D006454:Hemoglobins
keywords: anemia; cost-effective; postoperative venipuncture; total joint arthroplasty; transcutaneous hemoglobin measurement