Red blood cell transfusion and cesarean section.

OBJECTIVE

Our objective was to determine the incidence of blood transfusion in patients delivered by cesarean section and to identify factors predictive of the need for transfusion.

STUDY

DESIGN

A chart review was performed on cesarean patients receiving blood transfusion over a year at the Medical College of Virginia Hospital and an equal number of randomly selected cesarean patients.

RESULTS

Sixty-one (6.8%) patients received a packed red blood cell transfusion intraoperatively or postoperatively. Transfusion was associated with lower gestational ages, antepartum bleeding, arrest of descent, and longer postoperative stays. After stepwise logistic regression analysis, only antepartum bleeding and preoperative hemoglobin were significant independent predictors of the need for blood transfusion.

CONCLUSION

Transfusion with cesarean section is common and is associated with antepartum bleeding and other primarily intrapartum and unpredictable factors.