Intraarticular Administration of Tranexamic Acid Following Total Knee Arthroplasty

Background: Tranexamic acid (TXA) has received extensive attention in management of blood loss in orthopedic surgeries. However, the ideal method of TXA administration is still controversial. This study aims to determine whether intraarticular injection of TXA reduces blood loss after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods: Through a retrospective case-control study consecutive TKA patients receiving intraarticular TXA (Case group) were compared with similar patients undergoing TKA using traditional blood management strategy (Control group). Hemoglobin levels (Hb) before and after the surgery, need for transfusion, and reoperation due to massive blood loss were compared between the two groups. Results: Fifty TXA patients were compared with 50 patients of the control group. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, gender, and preoperative Hb. Postoperative blood loss and transfusion rate were significantly reducedin TXA patients compared to the control group (P<0.05). Conclusions: Our study revealed that intraarticular administration of TXA reduces postoperative blood loss as well as need for blood transfusion in patients undergoing TKA.