Tranexamic Acid Cuts Trauma Deaths
TOPLINE:
Use of tranexamic acid in traumatic injury emergencies reduces mortality, with no significant increase in problematic vascular occlusive events.
METHODOLOGY:
-
This systematic review and bias-adjusted meta-analysis reviewed seven randomized controlled trials that compared tranexamic acid with placebo in the emergency setting.
-
Primary outcome was 1-month mortality.
-
Secondary outcomes were 24-hour mortality and vascular occlusive events.
TAKEAWAY:
-
Tranexamic acid led to an 11% reduction in 1-month mortality (odds ratio [OR], 0.89; 95% CI, 0.84-0.95).
-
Tranexamic acid also reduced 24-hour mortality by 24% (OR, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.65-0.88).
-
Tranexamic acid did not increase the risk for vascular occlusive events (OR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.73-1.27).
IN PRACTICE:
According to the study authors, “despite the relatively small improvement, clinicians may consider even a slight enhancement to be significant from a clinical perspective, especially in patients with severe injuries, such as trauma and brain injuries.”
SOURCE:
The study, with the first author Pieter Francsois Fouche, MScMed (ClinEpi), PhD, was published online on November 22 in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
LIMITATIONS:
DISCLOSURES:
The authors declared no conflict of interest.
Credit: E+/Getty Images
Medscape Medical News © 2023 WebMD, LLC
Send news tips to [email protected].
Cite this: Tranexamic Acid Cuts Trauma Deaths – Medscape – Dec 01, 2023.
