Air Medical Blood Transfusion as a Trigger of Massive Transfusion Protocol.
Air Medical Journal · 2023-01-01 · Observational study
Abstract
Air medical services can improve access to blood products at the point of injury. Studies have shown that early activation of mass transfusion protocols (MTPs) can improve the survival of trauma patients by up to 25%. There are several scoring systems to guide early activation, but the use of a single criterion has been elusive. Our study sought to determine if air medical administration of blood products was a risk factor for massive transfusion activation and utilization of prehospital vital signs for calculation of the shock index. In our retrospective study, we evaluated adult trauma patients transfused by helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) and as a control all patients in our institution receiving the MTP. Our study found HEMS blood transfusion was not a reliable trigger for MTP, although the sample size may have limited our findings. We found that HEMS care resulted in an overall reduction in the volume of transfusion and an improvement in hemodynamic parameters upon trauma center arrival. HEMS transfusion and a higher rate of tranexamic acid administration may have contributed to these findings. Of note, the assessment of blood consumption score and shock index were nonspecific in the study populations.
Abstract © the authors or publisher, via PubMed. Reuse and removal
Tags
Haemostatics · Blood products · Fluids & blood · Helicopter & air ambulance · Tranexamic acid · Mortality & survival
Related articles
- Time to early resuscitative intervention association with mortality in trauma patients at risk for hemorrhage. (J Trauma Acute Care Surg, 2023)
- A Retrospective Study of Transfusion Requirements in Trauma Patients Receiving Tranexamic Acid. (J Trauma Nurs, 2019)
- The Importance of the "Damage Control" Strategy in Multiple Organ Injuries, Pathophysiology and Principles of Hemorrhage Control. (J Clin Med, 2026)
- Age- dependent injury patterns, management and impact on mortality of severe thoracic trauma in severely injured children: a retrospective study from the TraumaRegister DGU®. (Scand J Trauma Resusc Emerg Med, 2025)
- Pediatric Massive Transfusion: A Systematic Review. (Pediatr Emerg Care, 2018)
- Prehospital blood transfusion-experience from a specialized prehospital response vehicle-a retrospective cohort study. (Front Med (Lausanne), 2025)