Frequency of Anemia and Blood Transfusion in Critically Ill Patients

Abstract

Background: Anemia in adults is defined as, hemoglobin of patients admitted to critical care units become anemic within the first 3 days of ICU stay due to a number of reasons, and almost half of the patients receive blood transfusion and the number of transfusion increases proportionately with the duration of stay of patient in critical care unit. Objective: To determine the frequency of blood transfusion due to anemia in critically ill patients. Subject and Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Medical ICU of Liaquat National hospital Karachi from 26th July 2016 to 25th January 2017. Total 196 patients from critical care unit were included. The data collection technique applied is non-probability consecutive sampling. Demographic data along with co morbidities recorded and value of hemoglobin is recorded on daily basis. Results: Out of 196 patients 65.8% were anemic at the time of admission in ICU with mean hemoglobin of 10.85 ± 1.14 mg/dl. 84.7% of patients developed anemia during their ICU stay and their mean hemoglobin was 9.51±1.65 mg/dl. 13.8% patients were transfused Packed red blood cells, 9.7% were transfused once, while only single patient was given 4PRBCs. The mean pre-transfusion hemoglobin was 7.57 ± 0.60 mg/dl. Conclusion: Anemia is very frequent and multifactorial in critically ill patients. The study has helped to gauge the burden of blood transfusion in critically ill patients. It has highlightened the fact that blood transfusion has become an important component in the critical care units for the management of worsening anemia during ICU stay.