Major surgery outcomes improved with TXA

Tranexamic acid (TXA) reduces the risk of
serious bleeding complications by 40%

New research shows the medication TXA could nearly halve the number of people who suffer complications with bleeding following open heart and other major surgery.

Tranexamic acid (TXA) reduces the risk of serious bleeding complications by 40 per cent, resulting in fewer blood transfusions and emergency re-operations, according to a global study which involved 30 hospitals in seven countries. It was led by a team at the Alfred Hospital and Monash University.

Doctors had been concerned about using TXA because of fears that it might increase the risk of heart attack or stroke. But the world-wide study, funded by the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA) and the NHMRC, found that the drug did not increase thrombosis after open-heart surgery.

Researchers call for streamlined safety reporting

by Anne Crawford

The Department of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine at the Alfred and Monash University conducts large, independent Phase IV clinical trials to test the efficacy and safety of commonly used drugs. These ‘investigator-instigated’ or ‘public good’ trials are pragmatic, low-cost and carried out independently of drug companies.

As part of the trials, researchers report adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs). But the department’s researchers say ever-increasing and complex requirements from sponsors and ethics committees to report AEs and SAEs are duplicating reporting, thereby burdening researchers and causing a decrease in the uptake of research.

Monash research reveals aspirin is safe for heart surgery patients

Professor Paul Myles, lead author on the
ATACAS study.

A worldwide study led by Monash University clinician-researchers shows that patients who take aspirin before heart surgery are at no greater risk of bleeding or complications. 

Published 25 February in The New England Journal of Medicine, the collaborative research study led by Professor Paul Myles, Head of the Department of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine in the Central Clinical School and Alfred Health, investigated whether stopping or continuing aspirin before coronary artery surgery posed more risks or benefits.

Most patients with coronary artery disease receive aspirin for prevention of heart attack, stroke, and death. However aspirin poses a bleeding risk for patients undergoing surgery, and prior to this study it was unclear whether aspirin should be stopped before coronary artery surgery.