A single-centre study of haemostatic outcomes of joint replacement in von Willebrand disease and control patients and an analysis of the literature.

Introduction: Haemostatic assessments of patients with von Willebrand disease (VWD) who undergo total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA) have mainly relied on subjective parameters.
Aims: To compare objective haemostatic outcomes of TKA/THA in VWD patients and controls without bleeding disorders.
Methods: We retrospectively analysed haemostatic outcomes in VWD patients undergoing TKA/THA from 1993 to 2011 and compared them with two matched controls per operation. Using one-way analysis of variance, we tested the effect of VWD on bleeding risk after TKA and THA.
Results: Twelve VWD patients (6 type 1, 3 type 2M, 1 each of types 2A/2B/3) undergoing 19 operations (12 TKA, 7 THA) were matched to 38 controls. One (5%) of 19 operations in VWD patients and none of the control operations met clinical criteria for major bleeding. Baseline and postoperative day 1 haemoglobin levels, postoperative blood loss, transfused red blood cells (RBCs) and mean hospitalization days were not significantly different. More VWD patients than controls received RBC transfusions [12 (63%) vs. 12 (32%)]. Only 9 (47%) VWD patients vs. 38 (100%) controls received pharmacologic VTE prophylaxis. No postoperative symptomatic VTE occurred in either group.
Conclusion: In this largest, single-institutional study, von Willebrand factor replacement based on daily levels resulted in low frequency of major bleeding in VWD patients after TKA/THA. RBC transfusion was more frequent compared with matched controls, but other objective measures of haemostasis were similar. Lack of sufficient details in published reports precluded comparison of haemostatic outcomes.
(© 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)