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Perioperative blood loss leading to blood transfusion continues to be an issue for total knee arthroplasty (TKA) patients. The US Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) was used to determine annual trends in allogenic blood transfusion rates, and effects of transfusion on in-hospital mortality, length of stay (LOS), costs, discharge disposition, and complications of primary TKA patients. TKA patients between 2000 and 2009 were included (n = 4,544,999) and categorized as: (1) those who received a transfusion of allogenic blood, and (2) those who did not. Transfusion rates increased from 7.7% to 12.2%. For both transfused and not transfused groups, mortality rates and mean LOS declined, while total costs increased. Transfused patients were associated with adjusted odds ratios of in-hospital mortality (AOR 1.16; P = 0.184), 0.71 ± 0.01 days longer LOS (P < 0.0001), and incurred ($1777 ± 36; P < 0.0001) higher total costs per admission., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The large-scale utilization of allogenic blood transfusion and its associated outcomes have been described in critically ill patients and those undergoing high-risk cardiac surgery but not in patients undergoing elective total hip arthroplasty. The objective of this study was to determine the trends in utilization and outcomes of allogenic blood transfusion in patients undergoing primary total hip arthroplasty in the United States from 2000 to 2009., Methods: An observational cohort of 2,087,423 patients who underwent primary total hip arthroplasty from 2000 to 2009 was identified in the Nationwide Inpatient Sample. International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification procedure codes 99.03 and 99.04 were used to identify patients who received allogenic blood products during their hospital stay. Risk factors for allogenic transfusions were identified with use of multivariable logistic regression models. We used propensity score matching to estimate the adjusted association between transfusion and surgical outcomes., Results: The rate of allogenic blood transfusion increased from 11.8% in 2000 to 19.0% in 2009. Patient-related risk factors for receiving an allogenic blood transfusion include an older age, female sex, black race, and Medicaid insurance. Hospital-related risk factors include rural location, smaller size, and non-academic status. After adjusting for confounders, allogenic blood transfusion was associated with a longer hospital stay (0.58 ± 0.02 day; p < 0.001), increased costs ($1731 ± $49 [in 2009 U.S. dollars]; p < 0.001), increased rate of discharge to an inpatient facility (odds ratio, 1.28; 95% confidence interval, 1.26 to 1.31), and worse surgical and medical outcomes. In-hospital mortality was not affected by allogenic blood transfusion (odds ratio, 0.97; 95% confidence interval, 0.77 to 1.21)., Conclusions: The increase in allogenic blood transfusion among total hip arthroplasty patients is concerning considering the associated increase in surgical complications and adverse events. The risk factors for transfusion and its impact on costs and inpatient outcomes can potentially be used to enhance patient care through optimizing preoperative discussions and effective utilization of blood-conservation methods., (Copyright © 2014 by The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Incorporated.)