Does Receiving a Blood Transfusion Predict for Length of Stay in Children Undergoing Cranial Vault Remodeling for Craniosynostosis? Outcomes using the NSQIP Peds Dataset

Publication date: Available online 3 February 2017
Source:Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Author(s): Michael R. Markiewicz, Tord Alden, Mohmed Vasim Momin, Alexis B. Olsson, Ray J. Jurado, Fizan Abdullah, Michael Miloro
PurposeRecent interventions have aimed at reducing the need for blood transfusion in the perioperative period in patients with craniosynostosis undergoing cranial vault remodeling. However, little is known regarding if the receipt of a blood transfusion influences the length of hospital stay. The purpose of this study is to assess if the receipt of blood transfusion in patients undergoing cranial vault remodeling is associated with an increased length of stay.Materials and MethodsTo address the research purposes, the investigators designed a retrospective cohort study using the the 2014 Pediatric National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP Peds) dataset. The primary predictor variable was whether patients received a blood transfusion during cranial vault remodeling. The primary outcome variable was length of hospital stay after the operation. The association between the receipt of blood transfusion and length of stay was assessed using a students T-test. The association between other co-variates and the outcomes variable was assessed using linear regression, Analysis of Variance, and Tukey Test used for post-hoc pairwise comparisons.ResultsThe sample was composed of 756 patients who underwent cranial vault remodeling—503 who received blood transfusion, and 253 who did not. The primary predictor variable of blood transfusion was associated with an increased length of stay (4.1 vs 3.0 days, p = 0.03). Other co-variates associated with an increased length of stay included; race, American Society of Anesthesiologists status, premature birth, presence of a congential malformation, and number of sutures involved in craniosynostosis.ConclusionsThe receipt of a blood transfusion in the perioperative period in patients with craniosynostosis undergoing cranial vault remodeling was associated with an increased length of stay.



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