Intraoperative Hemostatic Agents in Thoracic Aortic Surgery—A Scoping Review
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Search Strategy
2.2. Eligibility Criteria
2.3. Selection and Data Collection Process
3. Results
3.1. Included Studies
3.2. Blood Products
3.3. Factor Eight Inhibitor Bypassing Activity (FEIBA)
3.4. Fibrinogen Supplementation
3.4.1. Fibrinogen Supplementation Compared to Placebo
3.4.2. Fibrinogen Supplementation Compared to No Treatment
3.4.3. Fibrinogen Supplementation Compared to FFP
3.5. Recombinant Factor VIIa (rFVIIa)
3.6. Antifibrinolytics
3.6.1. Tranexamic Acid (TXA) Versus Placebo or No TXA
3.6.2. TXA Versus Epsilon-Aminocaproic Acid (EACA) or Aprotinin
3.6.3. Aprotinin Versus Placebo or No Aprotinin
3.6.4. Aprotinin Versus EACA
3.7. Upcoming or Ongoing Trials
4. Discussion
4.1. Unique Challenges in Thoracic Aortic Surgery
4.2. Comparison with Guidelines
4.3. Knowledge Gaps and Future Research
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
Abbreviations
EACA | Epsilon-aminocaproic acid |
FEIBA | Factor eight inhibitor bypassing activity |
FFP | Fresh frozen plasma |
PCC | Prothrombin complex concentrate |
rFVIIa | Recombinant factor VIIa |
RCT | Randomized controlled trial |
TXA | Tranexamic acid |
References
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Author, Year, Country | Type of Study | Population | Intervention | Number of Included Patients | Findings | Effect of Intervention |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Blood products | ||||||
Stensballe, 2018, Denmark [17] | Single-blinded RCT (clinicians not blinded) | Acute type A dissections | OctoplastLG vs. standard FFP Trigger/timing: unclear Dose: unclear | 29/28 | OctoplastLG reduced endothelial injury. Decreased 24 h total transfusion and platelet transfusion volume and goal-directed use of procoagulants. No safety concerns were raised. | FFP: |
Wu, 2014, China [18] | Retrospective | Acute type A dissections | Platelet transfusion vs. no platelet transfusion Trigger/timing: intraoperative, but otherwise unclear Dose: unclear | 74/85 | In-hospital mortality was similar. Postoperative sternal wound infection, neurological deficits, postoperative transfusion volume and percentage of RBC was increased in the platelet-transfused group. | |
Naeem, 2018, USA [19] | Retrospective | Acute type A dissections | 0–2 vs. >2 RBC, and 0–1 platelet unit vs. >1 platelet unit Trigger/timing: unclear Dose: as per stratification | 68/34 | Rate of postoperative infections higher in patients receiving >2 units of RBC and independent risk factor. AKI and atrial fibrillation more frequent in patients receiving >1 unit of platelets and independent risk factor. Hospital stay longer in patients who received >2 units RBC or >1 unit platelets. No significant differences in mortality. | |
FEIBA vs. placebo or no FEIBA | ||||||
Sera, 2021, USA [20] | Double-blind RCT | Elective thoracic aortic surgery | FEIBA vs. placebo (saline) Trigger/timing: post-CPB, standard, regardless of bleeding or not Dose: 20 IU/kg concentration of 40 IU/mL, at a rate of 0.5 mL/kg via infusion over 10 min | 6/6 | Pilot trial. DHCA longer in FEIBA group. Substantial variability but no difference in post-randomization blood products transfused. No difference in chest tube drainage, duration of intubation and hospital length of stay. Two patients (both in FEIBA group) experienced postoperative cerebrovascular events and died, considered not to be related to FEIBA. | |
Pupovac, 2022, USA [21] | Retrospective, matched (not by intraoperative transfusion) | Acute type A dissections | FEIBA vs. no FEIBA Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery Dose: 500 units, repeated if necessary | Before matching: 112/119 After matching: 53/53 | Intraoperatively, no difference in blood product use. After surgery in the first 48 h, decreased blood product use in FEIBA group A greater proportion of the no FEIBA group received factor VIIa. No differences in incidences of thromboembolic complications |
Author, Year, Country | Type of Study | Population | Intervention | Number of Included Patients | Findings | Effect of Intervention |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fibrinogen suppletion versus placebo or no fibrinogen suppletion | ||||||
Rahe-Meyer, 2016, Worldwide REPLACE-II [22] | Double-blind RCT, multicenter | Open surgical procedures with CPB on any part of the aorta, provided a 5 min bleeding rate of 60–250 g. (emergency surgery excluded, thoracoabdominal included) | Fibrinogen concentrate vs. placebo (saline) Trigger: 60–250 g 5-min bleeding post-CPB Target: A10 FIBTEM of 22 mm Mean dose: 6 g | 78/74 | Fibrinogen group received more units of total blood products in the first 24 h compared to the placebo (5 vs. 3 units). FFP transfusions higher for the fibrinogen group but no significant differences in platelet or RBC transfusions. Placebo group had a higher percentage of patients avoiding transfusion. The initial 5 min bleeding mass was higher in the fibrinogen group. Furthermore, 31% of the total cohort had a pretreatment fibrinogen level of >2 g/L. Thromboembolic events occurred in 7.7% of the fibrinogen group and 13.5% of the placebo group. | |
Rahe-Meyer, 2013, Germany REPLACE-I [23] | Double-blind RCT, single-center | Open surgical procedures with CPB on any part of the aorta, provided a 5 min bleeding rate of 60–250 g. (emergency surgery excluded, thoracoabdominal included) | Fibrinogen concentrate vs. placebo (saline) Trigger: 60–250 g 5-min bleeding post-CPB Target: A10 FIBTEM of 22 mm Mean dose: 8 g | 29/32 | Comparable in characteristics and 5 min bleeding mass. Fibrinogen group received fewer units of total blood products in the first 24 h after study medication. Total transfusion avoidance was achieved in 45% in fibrinogen group, while all placebo patients were transfused. No safety concerns were noted. Incidences of thromboembolic patients did not differ (one in fibrinogen group, two in placebo group). | |
Vlot, 2022, Netherlands [24] | Double-blind RCT | Aortic arch surgery, provided a 5 min bleeding mass of 60–250 g Excluded: preoperative fibrinogen concentration < 1 g/L | Fibrinogen concentrate vs. placebo (saline) Trigger: 60–250 g 5-min bleeding post-CPB Dose: 4 g for <70 kg; 6 g for 70–90 kg; 8 g for >90 kg | 10/10 | There was no difference in allogeneic blood transfusion in the first 24 h after study medication. Before treatment, 90% of patients had a fibrinogen concentration < 2 g/L. The 5 min bleeding mass decreased by 52% in the fibrinogen group and 32% in the placebo group. Thromboembolic events were reported in one patient per group. | |
Kikura, 2023, Japan [25] | Retrospective, multicenter | Thoracic aortic surgery (including emergency) | Cryoprecipitate or fibrinogen concentrate vs. no product Trigger: fibrinogen < 1.0–1.2 g/L post-CPB or FIBTEM A10 < 6 mm during rewarming Dose: 2–3 g | 285/154 | No difference in incidence of major bleeding, re-exploration, or mortality. n patients with fibrinogen replacement and fibrinogen level < 1.5 g/L and a lower incidence of major bleeding compared to control. Decreased use of RBC and FFP, but increased use of platelet transfusion intraoperatively. Data on thromboembolic events were not reported. | |
Li, 2022, China [26] | Retrospective | Acute type A dissections | Fibrinogen concentrate vs. no fibrinogen concentrate Trigger: standard preoperatively Dose: 2 g | 105/54 | Reduced intraoperative blood loss and RBC transfusion. Reduced postoperative chest tube drainage. Data on thromboembolic events were not reported. | |
Guan, 2023, China [27] | Retrospective analysis of a prospective database | Acute type A dissections | Fibrinogen concentrate vs. no fibrinogen concentrate Trigger: fibrinogen < 1.5 g/L after protamine Target: fibrinogen > 2.0 g/L Dose: initially 25–50 mg/kg (~2–5 g for 70–90 kg) | 54/30 | Blood product use (RBC, FFP, platelets) decreased from the moment of infusion until the 5th postoperative day. Total transfusion avoidance was achieved in 17% of fibrinogen group, while all patients in control group received transfusions. The 24 h and 48 h postoperative drainage were lower in the fibrinogen group, though not maintained in total drainage volumes. Thromboembolic events were reported in none of the no fibrinogen group patietns and in two of the fibrinogen group patients. | |
Fibrinogen concentrate versus FFP | ||||||
Yamamoto, 2014, Japan [28] | Retrospective, age-matched | Elective thoracic aortic surgery with fib < 1.5 at the end of CPB | Fibrinogen concentrate vs. FFP Trigger: fibrinogen < 1.5 g/L after CPB Target: fibrinogen > 2.0 g/L Dose: 3–5 g | 25/24 | In the fibrinogen group, the average volume of intraoperative blood loss decreased by 64%, while the average number of transfusion units was reduced by 56% in RBC, 61% in FFP, and 55% in platelets compared to cases where only FFP was administered. Data on thromboembolic events were not reported. | Fibrinogen concentrate: |
Author, Year, Country | Type of Study | Population | Intervention | Number of Included Patients | Findings | Effect of Intervention |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Yan, 2014, China [29] | Non-randomized prospective trial (family of patients decided allocation) | Acute type A dissections | Platelets + rFVIIa vs. conventional (RBCs, FFPs, platelets, cryoprecipitate) Trigger/timing: standard, during surgery Dose: 3 units of platelets, 2.4 mg of rFVIIa | 25/46 | Decreased intraoperative RBC, FFP, platelets and cryoprecipitate use and postoperative platelet use. Less time to sternal closure. Blood loss similar at 1, 6 and 12 h after surgery. No difference in serious adverse events. One patient in each group experienced a stroke. | |
Zindovic, 2017, Finland [30] | Retrospective, matched (not by intraoperative transfusion), multicenter | Acute type A dissections | rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery or in the ICU Dose: unknown | Before matching: 590/171 After matching: 120/120 | The rFVIIa group received more RBCs, platelets and FFP. This group underwent re-exploration for bleeding more often and had greater 24 h chest tube drainage. No difference in mortality, stroke, or renal replacement therapy. | |
Keyoumu, 2024, China [31] | Unclear (as it includes dissections, presumably retrospective), no matching described | Acute type A dissections (onset < 12 h, <65 year) | rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery Dose: 100 µg/kg | 60/60 | Duration of CPB was longer in the rFVIIa group. Decreased chest tube drainage and transfusion volumes postoperatively, but higher mortality and thromboembolic events (unclear which type of thrombosis) in the rFVIIa group. | |
Andersen, 2012, USA [32] | Retrospective, matched (e.g., intraoperative transfusion) | Thoracic aortic surgery (including emergency) Excluded: patients who received 60 μg/kg or more of rFVIIa | Low dose rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery Dose: initial dose of <60 μg/kg | 44/44 matched | Improved coagulation indicators (INR, aPTT) and decreased postoperative transfusions. No differences in postoperative complications (including thromboembolic complications). Two patients experience an embolic stroke in the intervention group, compared to none in the control group. | |
Goksedef, 2012, USA [33] | Retrospective, matched (not by intraoperative transfusion) | Thoracic aortic surgery (aneurysm database, also 1 dissection included) | rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery Dose: 1 to 2 mg (10–30 μg/kg), repeated once if bleeding persisted. | Before matching: 37/339 After matching: 29/29 | Decreased chest tube drainage, decreased postoperative transfusion of RBC and FFP, decreased incidence of resurgical intervention due to bleeding. No differences in thromboembolic events or mortality. In the intervention group, one patient had a stroke and one patient had a transient ischemic attack (TIA), compared to two strokes and one TIA in the control group. | |
Ise, 2022, Japan [34] | Retrospective, matched (not by intraoperative transfusion) | Thoracic aortic surgery (including dissections) | rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery Dose: 5, 2 or 1 mg | Before matching: 42/102 After matching: 29/29 | More blood loss and transfusion and fibrinogen concentrate intraoperatively. Postoperative bleeding and amount of transfusion significantly higher in the rFVIIa group in the unmatched cohort, but not in the matched cohort. No difference in mortality and thrombosis-related AESs. One patient per group experienced a stroke. | |
Tritapepe, 2007, Italy [35] | Retrospective, matched (not by intraoperative transfusion) | Acute type A dissections | rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: on the ICU, if surgical cause was excluded and if bleeding exceeded 150 mL/h Dose: 70 μg/kg, repeated if no reduction of bleeding to <150 mL/h. | Before matching: 23/150 After matching: 23/23 | Significant reduction in hourly blood loss was found 1 h after rFVIIa administration, as opposed to no difference in hourly blood loss in the control group. Treated patients received larger amounts of blood products. Blood product usage after rFVIIa was lower than before administration. No effect of rFVIIa on adverse events and mortality. One patient in the intervention group experienced a stroke, while none did in the control group. | |
Hang, 2021, USA [36] | Retrospective | Thoracic aortic surgery (including dissections) | rFVIIa vs. no rFVIIa Trigger/timing: salvage therapy during surgery Dose: range of 20–90 µg/kg at the physicians discretion. | 20/39 | More intraoperative blood products transfused the rFVIIa group. Chest tube drainage in the first 24 h was similar. No difference in total additional blood products and the percentage of patients who required them in the ICU. There was a trend towards higher rate of reoperation for bleeding in rFVIIa group. Postoperative thromboembolic events and mortality were similar. Two patients in the intervention group and five patients in the control group experienced a stroke. |
Author, Year, Country | Type of Study | Population | Intervention | Number of Included Patients | Findings | Effect of Intervention |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
TXA vs. placebo or no TXA | ||||||
Casati, 2002, Italy [37] | Double-blind RCT | Elective thoracic aortic surgery | TXA vs. placebo Dose: 1 g bolus, 400 mg/h infusion | 29/29 | Lower incidence of excessive bleeding (>600 mL chest tube drainage/24 h). Less blood loss in the first 24h and decreased perioperative RBC use. No difference in complications. One patient in the TXA group experienced a stroke, while none did in the placebo group. One patient per group experienced myocardial infarctions. | |
Ahn, 2015, Japan [38] | Retrospective | Acute type A dissections | TXA vs. no TXA Dose: no bolus, 16 mg/kg/h infusion, max 1000 mg/h | 26/29 | Decreased intraoperative and postoperative blood product use (RBC, FFP, platelets). Decreased chest tube drainage. No difference in complications. Five patients in the TXA group experienced a stroke, while seven did in the control group. One patient had a seizure in the TXA group, while none did in the control group. | |
TXA versus EACA or aprotinin | ||||||
Makhija, 2013, India [39] | RCT | Thoracic aortic surgery (including emergency surgery) | EACA vs. TXA Dose: TXA 10 mg/kg bolus, 1 mg/kg/h infusion. EACA 50 mg/kg bolus, 25 mg/kg/h infusion | 30/31 | No difference in intra- or postoperative blood product use. No difference in chest tube drainage. More renal injury in the EACA group. Possibly more seizures in the TXA group. One patient had a seizure in the EACA group, while three did in the TXA group. One patient per group experienced a stroke. | |
Reidy, 2024, UK [40] | Retrospective, matched | Acute type A dissections | Aprotinin vs. TXA Dose: TXA 1 g bolus, 500 mg/h infusion. Aprotinin 2 million unit bolus, 500,000 units/h infusion | Before matching 82/149 After matching 49/49 | No differences in the amount of blood products transfused, 0chest tube drainage, mortality, return to theater, or CVVH (both in matched and unmatched cohorts). In the matched cohort, there were more patients with an open chest in the aprotinin group (2 vs. 0) but not in the unmatched cohort. After matching, 7 patients in the aprotinin group versus 9 patients in the TXA group experienced a stroke. | |
Nicolau-Raducu, 2010, USA [41] | Retrospective | Thoracic aortic surgery with DHCA | Aprotonin vs. TXA Dose: TXA 30 mg/kg bolus, 15 mg/kg/h infusion. Aprotinin 2 million unit bolus, 500,000 units/h infusion | 48/36 | Aprotinin group: longer CPB time. Trend toward fewer intraoperative blood product transfusions, but not statistically significant. No difference in chest tube drainage. More renal dysfunction, though not identifiable as risk factor in regression. Postoperative complications were similar between groups. Eight patients in the aprotinin group versus seven patients in the TXA group experienced a stroke. | |
Sniecinski, 2010, USA [42] | Retrospective | Thoracic aortic surgery with DHCA (including emergency surgery) | Aprotinin vs. TXA Dose: TXA 2 g bolus, 500 mg/h infusion. Aprotinin 2 million unit bolus, 500,000 units/h infusion | 82/78 | Increased use of RBC, FFP, platelets, cryoprecipitate, and rFVIIa in TXA group. Trend towards more seizures in the TXA group but not significant (5 patients in the TXA group versus none in the aprotinin group). No difference in other complications. Two patients per group experienced a stroke. | Aprotinin: TXA: |
Chivasso, 2018, UK [43] | Retrospective, matched | Thoracic aortic surgery (including dissections) | Aprotinin vs. no aprotinin (they state) but actually vs. TXA Dose: TXA 15 mg/kg bolus, 4.5 mg/kg/h infusion. Aprotinin 2 million unit bolus, 420,000 units/h infusion (70 mg/h) | 107/425 before matching 107/107 matched | Higher use of FFP in both matched and unmatched cohorts in the aprotinin group. No difference in other blood products, postoperative bleeding or complications. Five patients in the aprotinin group experienced a stroke, while seven did in the no aprotinin (TXA) group. | Aprotinin: |
Sedrakyan, 2006, USA [44] | Retrospective, matched | Thoracic aortic surgery (aneurysms, dissections, ulcers, and hematomas) | Aprotinin vs. no aprotinin (but actually compared to EACA and TXA) Dose aprotinin: 2 million unit bolus, 500,000 units/h infusion | No before matching available After matching 84/84 | Difference at baseline after matching: controls were more likely to receive antifibrinolytics (EACA or TXA), essentially comparing aprotinin to an alternative blood loss reduction strategy that included antifibrinolytic therapy > 50% of the time. Aprotinin reduced the intraoperative amount of platelet transfusion and resulted in less chest tube drainage in the first 24 h. There were no associations with thromboembolic complications. | Aprotinin: |
Aprotinin versus placebo or no aprotinin | ||||||
Ehrlich, 1998, Austria [45] | Double-blind RCT | Elective thoracic aortic surgery (including chronic dissections) | Aprotinin vs. placebo (saline) Dose aprotinin: 1 million unit bolus before CPB | 25/25 | Aprotinin decreased chest tube output in the first 24 h and decreased transfusion requirements (RBC, FFP, platelets, cryoprecipitate). One patient in the no aprotinin group experienced a stroke, while none did in the aprotinin group. | |
Westaby, 1994, UK [46] | Both retrospective and prospective | Acute type A dissections | Aprotinin vs. no aprotinin Dose aprotinin: 2 million unit bolus, 500,000 units/h infusion | 53/29 | No reduction in overall blood loss and transfusion requirements for aprotinin patients. After the introduction of hypothermic circulatory arrest (1989), aprotinin patients consistently experienced more blood loss. There were 5 deaths per group. In the aprotinin group, two of those were due to myocardial infarction and one due to pulmonary embolisms, in the control group none were due to thromboembolic complications. | |
Parolari, 1997, Italy [47] | Retrospective | Thoracic aortic surgery with DHCA (including dissections) | Aprotinin vs. no aprotinin Dose: 700 mg. | 18/21 | No difference in postoperative blood loss, blood product use, re-exploration, mortality or complications. However, the aprotinin group showed a higher trend towards neurological deficit and a more complicated postoperative course. | |
Seigne, 2000, USA [48] | Retrospective | Elective or urgent thoracic aortic surgery with DHCA (all Bentalls) | Aprotinin vs. no aprotinin Dose aprotinin: 1 million unit bolus, 100,000 units/h infusion | 9/10 | Aprotinin decreased RBC, FFP, and platelet use intraoperatively and FFP postoperatively. No difference in chest tube drainage. Two patients in the non-aprotinin group developed seizures (none in the aprotinin group), while one patient experienced a stroke in the aprotinin group (none in the non-aprotinin group). | |
Aprotinin versus EACA | ||||||
Eaton, 1998, USA [49] | Retrospective | Thoracic aortic surgery (including dissections) | Aprotinin vs. EACA Dose: aprotinin 2 million unit bolus, 500,000 units/h infusion. EACA 5–40 g with a bolus/infusion scheme | 29/19 | No difference in chest tube output or postoperative transfusion. Possibly more renal failure in the EACA group. No differences in other complications. Three patients in the aprotinin group and five patients in the EACA group experienced strokes. |
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van Haeren, M.M.T.; Bozic, C.; Breel, J.S.; Eberl, S.; Jamaludin, F.S.; Veelo, D.P.; Müller, M.C.A.; Vlaar, A.P.J.; Hermanns, H. Intraoperative Hemostatic Agents in Thoracic Aortic Surgery—A Scoping Review. J. Clin. Med. 2025, 14, 4001. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14114001
van Haeren MMT, Bozic C, Breel JS, Eberl S, Jamaludin FS, Veelo DP, Müller MCA, Vlaar APJ, Hermanns H. Intraoperative Hemostatic Agents in Thoracic Aortic Surgery—A Scoping Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2025; 14(11):4001. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14114001
Chicago/Turabian Stylevan Haeren, Maite M. T., Caitlin Bozic, Jennifer S. Breel, Susanne Eberl, Faridi S. Jamaludin, Denise P. Veelo, Marcella C. A. Müller, Alexander P. J. Vlaar, and Henning Hermanns. 2025. "Intraoperative Hemostatic Agents in Thoracic Aortic Surgery—A Scoping Review" Journal of Clinical Medicine 14, no. 11: 4001. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14114001
APA Stylevan Haeren, M. M. T., Bozic, C., Breel, J. S., Eberl, S., Jamaludin, F. S., Veelo, D. P., Müller, M. C. A., Vlaar, A. P. J., & Hermanns, H. (2025). Intraoperative Hemostatic Agents in Thoracic Aortic Surgery—A Scoping Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 14(11), 4001. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14114001