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Limb Reattachment

The morning of April 15th 2005 will be one that 11-year-old Jeremy and his family will never forget. While he was assisting his father with a yard project, a tragic accident occurred. Jeremy’s left forearm was severed approximately 2 inches above the wrist. He was transferred to University Hospital from a community hospital south of Newark. In a surgery that lasted over 12 hours, Dr. Ramazi Datiashvili (Director of Microsurgery and Replantation) skillfully reattached young Jeremy’s arm. The delicate procedure involved the reattachment of four blood vessels, three nerves, two bones and 18 tendons. Thanks to his parent’s quick action and his surgeon’s skill Jeremy did not lose too much blood and left the operating room with a hemoglobin count of 10.8 g/dl (normal hemoglobin for a male is 14.0 to 19.0g/dl). He recovered comfortably and returned to the operating room for brief procedures over the next several weeks. Jeremy’s rehabilitation will be a long one, but he is progressing very well.

Pediatric Trauma

Samantha, 10, was enjoying a summer day at her cousin’s house. At dinnertime her aunt was serving up the pizza when the unthinkable happened. Samantha lost her balance while playing in the kitchen and fell into the sharp knife her aunt was using to slice the pizza. She sustained a stab wound to the left side of her chest. She was brought immediately to the trauma center at UH.

Although she was quite bloody and frightened, she was awake and alert. She told the trauma team how she was injured. Samantha's aunt informed them that Samantha was one of Jehovah’s Witnesses and did not want a blood transfusion. At this time her vital signs were stable. She was taken to the operating room as quickly as possible to stop the bleeding. There was a cut on the lining of the heart that was skillfully repaired by trauma surgeon Dr. Ziad Sifri. Cell salvage was used during the surgery to help avoid the need for blood transfusion. Samantha was transferred to the pediatric ICU for very close monitoring. She remained stable and progressed well over the next few days. She was discharged home five days later.

Cardiac Surgery

Boris is a 49 year old diabetic male. He was transferred to the New Jersey Cardiac Institute from another facility for treatment of an acute myocardial infarction. Upon admission he was slightly anemic and had been taking powerful anticoagulants. Boris had to remain in the hospital for correction of these blood levels prior to surgery. His cardiac artery bypass was performed six days after he was transferred from a facility that told him he was too high risk for the operation. Dr. Barry Esrig, chief of the division of cardiothoracic surgery, performed Boris’ operation without placing him on the heart-lung bypass equipment. This meant that Boris’ heart and lungs were always doing their job and is often referred to as “off-pump” coronary artery bypass. His recovery was uneventful and he was discharged to his sister’s home for cardiac rehabilitation four days after surgery.

Pediatric spine surgery

Jeremy presented a challenging case for Dr. Colin Bethel, pediatric surgeon, and Dr. John McKeon pediatric orthopedic surgeon, but they rose to the occasion. Jeremy was a 17 year old with severe right thoracic scoliosis. His X-rays showed a 90-degree curve in his back. Until six months before his bloodless surgery he had not received any treatment for his painful and potentially dangerous condition.

Due to the severity of his deformity and his desire to avoid blood transfusion, Jeremy’s procedure was performed in two stages. Cell salvage and hemodilution were employed by the surgical team to avoid blood transfusion. Jeremy had his procedures approximately two weeks apart. He was discharged home four days after the second procedure. He is doing well and his mother is pleased with the skill and commitment of our surgeons.

Severe Internal Bleeding

The daughter of Mrs. M contacted the nurse coordinator of University Hospital's bloodless program early one afternoon. She related that her mother, Mrs. M had been in a close-by hospital for several days following what was to be a routine minor surgical procedure. She experienced complications and was rapidly losing blood and developing severe anemia. The staff at the hospital requested that the family consent to blood before they perform another surgical procedure on Mrs. M. The family chose at this time to transfer Mrs. M. to The University Hospital. Dr. Edwin Deitch accepted Mrs. M. as a patient and she was transferred to the Surgical ICU at University Hospital.

That evening Mrs. M. underwent another surgical procedure. All active bleeding was stopped but Mrs. M. 's hemoglobin had dropped to a dangerous 2.3 g/dL (normal range for females: 12.0 - 16.0 g/dL). Mrs. M was immediately placed on a regimen of Procrit and intravenous iron to enhance her body's production of blood. She required assistance with her breathing for a few days.

Five days after being rushed to The University Hospital in very serious condition she was transferred to the progressive care unit with a hemoglobin level of 5.0 g/dL, where she was able to sit up in bed, eat real food and visit with her many happy visitors. Mrs. M continued to regain her strength and was eventually discharged home with a hemoglobin of 6.6 g/dL (and climbing) twelve days after the doctors at the other local hospital had stated that nothing more could be done for her.

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