Perioperative challenges in the management of a Jehovah’s Witness patient undergoing parenchyma sparing hepatectomy

Jehovah’s Witness patients presenting for liver surgery pose challenges to the anesthetists as well as the surgeons, due to their abstinence from receiving blood products. Despite this, surgery is the only curative option for operable colorectal liver metastases (CRLM). We report a case of a Jehovah’s Witness with multiple comorbidities who had a parenchyma sparing hepatectomy (PSH) complicated by intraoperative bleeding. A 52-year-old ASA II patient with hypertension, diabetes and ischemic heart disease on dual antiplatelet therapy was scheduled for open PSH for multiple bilobar CRLMs. He was prehabilitated with an emphasis on enhancing erythropoiesis and improving his functional capacity. PSH was done using a Cavitron ultrasonic surgical aspirator (CUSA) with intermittent Pringle maneuver, a low central venous pressure and restricted intravenous fluids. His postoperative recovery was complicated by a minor upper gastrointestinal bleed that was managed conservatively. The authors certify that informed written consent has been obtained from patient for publication. Keywords: Jehovah’s Witness; Liver surgery; Anesthesia; Hepatectomy Citation: Dassanayake V, Sivaganesh S, Subasinghe D, Pitigala P. Perioperative challenges in the management of a Jehovah’s Witness patient undergoing parenchyma sparing hepatectomy. Anaesth. pain intensive care 2021;26(1):119–122 ; DOI: 10.35975/apic.v26i1.1787 Received: October 16, 2021, Reviewed: October 28, 2021, Accepted: November 07, 2021