Impact of the volume of blood collected by phlebotomy on transfusion requirements in preterm infants with birth weight of less than 1500 g. A quasi-experimental study.

INTRODUCTION

Anemia is a complication in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants, and lab tests are a predominant risk factor. At least one red blood cell transfusion is given in more than 50 % of cases. Transfusions are associated with a higher risk for infections, intracranial hemorrhage, necrotizing enterocolitis, and bronchopulmonary dysplasia. In 2012, Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires implemented a strategy to collect a lower blood volume by phlebotomy. The objective of this study was to assess its association with the number of transfusions.

METHODS

Before-and-after, quasi-experimental study. The number of transfusions was compared between two groups of VLBW preterm infants with different blood collection volumes. The correlation between the collection volume and the number of transfusions was assessed estimating Spearman's coefficient. A logistic regression model was used to adjust for confounders.

RESULTS

The study included 178 patients with a mean gestational age of 29.4 weeks (standard deviation: 2.7) and a birth weight of 1145 g (875-1345). The baseline red series profile was similar between both groups. The number of transfusions (p = 0.017) and the transfusion volume (p = 0.048) decreased significantly. The correlation coefficient was 0.83. In the multivariate analysis, collection volume and birth weight were associated with a requirement of more than three transfusions.

CONCLUSION

A lower blood collection volume in VLBW preterm infants is independently associated with fewer transfusion requirements.