Hepatic and renal functions and blood cell counts in brain tumor patients during the perioperative period

We aimed to investigate the correlations between biochemical and hematological markers and the clinical conditions of brain tumor patients before and after craniotomy. A retrospective study was conducted in 90 brain tumor patients. Age, gender, underlying diseases, tumor size and intraoperative blood loss were recorded. Red blood cell counts and hepatic and renal markers were analyzed preoperatively and postoperatively. Albumin decreased by 5.6 g/L after surgery (p 0.001). Older patients (52 years) and females had lower albumin levels than younger patients and males did. Red blood cell counts and hemoglobin levels decreased significantly on the 1st and increased on the 3rd postoperative day. The blood glucose level increased on the 1st postoperative day and then decreased. Older patients had higher blood glucose levels than younger patients did (p 0.05). The postoperative serum sodium, potassium and calcium levels were within the normal ranges; 37 patients had hypocalcemia (41.1%) and patients with hypokalemia and hyponatremia increased postoperatively. Albumin and hemoglobin levels were linearly correlated (correlation coefficient 0.559, p 0.001). Intraoperative blood loss was correlated with tumor size (p 0.05) but did not affect the decrease in hematological markers. In brain tumor patients, red blood cell counts and hemoglobin and serum albumin levels were significantly decreased after craniotomy; these effects were influenced by gender and age instead of intraoperative blood loss. The postoperative blood glucose level peaked and then decreased; it was affected by age and diabetes mellitus. Electrolytes remained relatively stable. These findings have implications for patient management and postoperative complication prevention.