Open Craniosynostosis Surgery: Effect of Early Intraoperative Blood Transfusion on Postoperative Course.

Correction of craniosynostosis can result in blood loss when the patient already has physiologic anemia. The aim of this study was to determine whether patients benefit from early blood transfusion and whether the timing of blood transfusion affects metabolic disturbances and the postoperative course. In this retrospective review, 71 patients who underwent open calvarial vault remodeling for correction of craniosynostosis were separated into 2 groups according to whether they received blood transfusions early (within the first 30 minutes of surgery) or later (after the first 30 minutes of surgery).