The effects of declining transfusion rates on elective total hip arthroplasty.

The incidence of red blood cell transfusion is reviewed in a series of 130 elective total hip arthroplasties performed over a four-year period. A significant downward trend was noted in the hemoglobin level at which patients were transfused (p less than 0.01). Conversely, no significant differences were noted in the rate of rehabilitation, the length of hospitalization, or the incidence of complications. In addition, patients who predonated autologous blood were transfused at a higher rate than those who did not (p less than 0.001), but they received less homologous blood than patients who had not predonated.