title: Elevated prothrombin time on routine preoperative laboratory results in a healthy infant undergoing craniosynostosis repair: Diagnosis and perioperative management of congenital factor VII deficiency.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Congenital factor VII deficiency is a rare bleeding disorder with high phenotypic variability. It is critical that children with congenital Factor VII deficiency be identified early when high-risk surgery is planned. Cranial vault surgery is common for children with craniosynostosis, and these surgeries are associated with significant morbidity mostly secondary to the risk of massive blood loss.
  
  
  METHODS
  A two-month old infant who presented for elective craniosynostosis repair was noted to have an elevated prothrombin time (PT) with a normal activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) on preoperative labs. The infant had no clinical history or reported family history of bleeding disorders, therefore a multidisciplinary decision was made to repeat the labs under general anesthesia and await the results prior to incision. The results confirmed the abnormal PT and the case was canceled. Hematologic workup during admission revealed factor VII deficiency. The patient underwent an uneventful endoscopic strip craniectomy with perioperative administration of recombinant Factor VIIa.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Important considerations for perioperative laboratory evaluation and management in children with factor VII deficiency are discussed. Anesthetic and surgical management of the child with factor VII deficiency necessitates meticulous planning to prevent life threatening bleeding during the perioperative period.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A thorough history and physical examination with a high clinical suspicion are vital in preventing hemorrhage during surgeries in children with coagulopathies. Abnormal preoperative lab values should always be confirmed and addressed before proceeding with high-risk surgery. A multidisciplinary discussion is essential to optimize the risk-benefit ratio during the perioperative period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287,United States. Electronic address: kljones81@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Kareen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287,United States; Department of Pediatrics, The Johns Hopkins University, 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287,United States. Electronic address: rgreenbe@jhmi.edu.
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, The Johns Hopkins University, 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287,United States; Department of Neurosurgery, The Johns Hopkins University, 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287, United States. Electronic address: eahn4@jhmi.edu.
authors.forename: Edward S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287,United States; Department of Pediatrics, The Johns Hopkins University, 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287,United States. Electronic address: skudcha1@jhmi.edu.
authors.forename: Sapna R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Kudchadkar
keywords: Bleeding disorders; Case report; Craniosynostosis; Factor VII deficiency; Pediatric patients; Perioperative management