• DOI:10.1093/bja/aes310
• Corpus ID: 14105912

Moderate dosage of tranexamic acid during cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass and convulsive seizures: incidence and clinical outcome.

@article{Koster2013ModerateDO,
  title={Moderate dosage of tranexamic acid during cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass and convulsive seizures: incidence and clinical outcome.},
  author={Andreas Koster and Jochen B{\"o}rgermann and Armin Zittermann and J U Lueth and T. Gillis-Januszewski and Uwe Schirmer},
  journal={British journal of anaesthesia},
  year={2013},
  volume={110 1},
  pages={
          34-40
        }
}

• A. Koster, J. Börgermann, +3 authors U. Schirmer
• Published 2013
• Medicine
• British journal of anaesthesia

BACKGROUND
Convulsive seizures (CS) occur in ∼1% of the patients after cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass. Recent investigations indicate an up to seven-fold increase in CS in cardiac surgical patients receiving high doses (≥60 mg kg(-1) body weight) of tranexamic acid (TA).

METHODS
In a retrospective data analysis of 4883 cardiac surgical patients, we investigated the incidence of CS in patients receiving a moderate dose of TA (24 mg kg(-1) body weight) compared with a reference group not receiving TA as a primary endpoint. Secondary endpoints were intensive care unit stay and in-hospital mortality. We performed propensity score (PS)-adjusted logistic regression analysis to test the association between TA use/non-use and clinical outcomes.

RESULTS
Compared with the reference group, the PS-adjusted odds ratio (OR) for CS in the TA group was 1.703 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.01-2.87; P=0.045; incidence 2.5% vs 1.2%]. Log-ICU-stay was significantly longer (P=0.004) and PS-adjusted relative in-hospital mortality risk was significantly higher for the TA group compared with the reference group (OR=1.89; 95% CI: 1.21-2.96; P=0.005). Both the TA-associated CS incidence and the in-hospital mortality risk were only significant in patients undergoing open-heart surgery (OR=2.034, 95% CI: 1.07-3.87; P=0.034 and OR=2.20, 95% CI: 1.32-3.69; P=0.003, respectively) but not in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (OR=1.21, 95% CI: 0.49-3.03; P=0.678 and OR=1.13, 95% CI: 0.42-3.02; P=0.809, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS
In open-heart surgery, even moderate TA doses are associated with a doubled rate of CS and in-hospital mortality. Prospective trials are needed to further evaluate the safety profile of TA in cardiac surgery.