In the Era of Tranexamic Acid, are Type and Screens for Primary Total Joint Arthroplasty Obsolete?

Advances in technique and perioperative blood management have improved transfusion rates following unilateral primary total joint arthroplasty and led some centers to change their preoperative blood ordering protocols. The purpose of this study is to determine whether deleting type and screens (T&S) from preoperative order sets was safe for patients undergoing primary total knee (TKA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA) and to identify patients who required allogenic blood transfusion.

Prospectively collected data were reviewed to identify any patient with a hemoglobin (Hgb) drawn within 30 days of surgery who received a transfusion following a unilateral primary TKA or THA.

A total of 1255 patients met inclusion criteria. Of the total, 682 (54%) were TKAs and 573 (46%) were THAs. The mean preoperative Hgb was 11.5 g/dL with an average delta Hgb of 3.6 g/dL on postoperative day 1. No patient required an intraoperative transfusion. Fourteen patients (mean age and body mass index, 67.9 and 29.0) required a transfusion (1.1%) for postoperative blood loss anemia. Of those transfused, 13 (93%) of the patients underwent THA with the mean estimated blood loss of 378.6 mL. The total cost for a patient obtaining a T&S is $191.27.

In our series, the risk of blood transfusion was rare (1.1%) and occurred only secondary to postoperative blood loss anemia. There were no cases of intraoperative complication requiring urgent or emergent blood transfusion. Removing T&S from standard order sets for patients undergoing primary TKA or THA appears to be a safe and cost-effective practice.