Using acute hypervolaemic haemodilution as blood conservation technique in a Jehovah’s witness patient undergoing an emergency transphenoidal surgery: a Sabah experience

Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW) is a branch of Christianity which was founded in 1872. However, their beliefs differ from other Christians in many ways. Majority of JW believe that it is against the teaching of God should they receive blood transfusion, while minority think receiving own blood or others is...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BMJ case reports 2021-03, Vol.14 (3), p.e241916
Main Authors: Yeap, Tat Boon, Teah, Ming Kai, Zenian, Sofan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anemia
Anesthesia
Blood Transfusion
Blood transfusions
Case Report
Case reports
Emergencies
Endoscopy
Hemodilution
Hemoglobin
Humans
Hypotension
Hypothyroidism
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovahs Witnesses
Malaysia
Patients
Surgery
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Summary:Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW) is a branch of Christianity which was founded in 1872. However, their beliefs differ from other Christians in many ways. Majority of JW believe that it is against the teaching of God should they receive blood transfusion, while minority think receiving own blood or others is acceptable. These vast beliefs should always be respected by all medical practitioners to avoid medicolegal implications. The differing beliefs about blood transfusion is certainly a huge challenge to the surgeons and anesthesiologists, especially dealing with major surgeries. Thus, effective surgical and anaesthetic techniques are focused to minimise blood loss to avoid unnecessary blood transfusion. We report a JW patient who successfully underwent an emergency endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery secondary to pituitary apoplexy; highlighting our intraoperative acute hypervolaemic haemodilution technique to reduce blood loss.
ISSN:1757-790X
1757-790X
DOI:10.1136/bcr-2021-241916