Findings and Conclusion To our knowledge , this is the first meta- analysis to compare the clinical results between PAT and a control in joint replacement patients .
This meta- analysis has proven that the use of a PAT reinfusion system reduced significantly the dem and for ABT , the number of patients who require ABT and the cost of hospitalization after total knee and hip arthroplasty .
This study , together with other previously published data , suggests that PAT drains are beneficial .
Background Total hip or knee arthroplasty is an elective procedure that is usually accompanied by substantial blood loss , which may lead to acute anemia .
As a result , almost half of total joint arthroplasty patients receive allogeneic blood transfusions ( ABT ) .
Many studies have shown that post-operative auto-transfusion ( PAT ) significantly reduces the need for  ABT  , but other studies have question ed the efficacy of this method .
Efficacy, safety and user-friendliness of two devices for postoperative autologous shed red blood cell re-infusion in elective orthopaedic surgery patients: A randomized pilot study.
To determine the safety , efficacy and user-friendliness of two different postoperative autologous blood re-infusion systems , an open , r and omized , controlled study was performed . Eligible consecutive primary and revision total hip and knee replacement patients were r and omized for one of the two systems or for a control group in which shed blood was not re-infused . The nursing staff scored user-friendliness . Patients were monitored after re-infusion . In all three patient groups , a restrictive transfusion trigger was used . Sixty-nine of 70 r and omized patients were evaluated . Ease of use , efficacy and safety of both re-infusion systems were comparable . There was no difference in allogeneic blood use between the groups . Thirty per cent of the patients re-infused with autologous blood developed a mainly mild , febrile transfusion reaction . No other adverse reactions were seen . Signs of coagulopathy after re-infusion were not found . In multivariate analysis , autologous re-infusion was an independent factor associated with a shorter hospital stay . Both postoperative autologous blood re-infusion systems were of equal efficacy and safety . The contribution of autologous wound blood re-infusion to reduce allogeneic transfusions must be investigated in a larger study
Findings and Conclusion To our knowledge , this is the first meta- analysis to compare the clinical results between PAT and a control in joint replacement patients .
This meta- analysis has proven that the use of a PAT reinfusion system reduced significantly the dem and for ABT , the number of patients who require ABT and the cost of hospitalization after total knee and hip arthroplasty .
This study , together with other previously published data , suggests that PAT drains are beneficial .
Background Total hip or knee arthroplasty is an elective procedure that is usually accompanied by substantial blood loss , which may lead to acute anemia .
As a result , almost half of total joint arthroplasty patients receive allogeneic blood transfusions ( ABT ) .
Many studies have shown that post-operative auto-transfusion ( PAT ) significantly reduces the need for  ABT  , but other studies have question ed the efficacy of this method .