Effect of tranexamic acid on blood loss in children undergoing tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy: A systematic Review

Abstract

Adenotonsillectomy is one of the most common surgical procedure in the Otorhinolaryngology practice. Post adenotonsillectomy hemorrhage is the most serious complication of this procedure. Many techniques are in use in the perioperative period including the use of tranexamic acid to avoid such this complication. Tranexamic acid is an antifibrinolytic agent used for hemostasis and it may be administered topically or through intravenous route. This systematic review is a randomized controlled study that analyses the effect of tranexamic acid in decreasing the amount of blood loss and the incidence of post tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy. Patients included in this study are children of both sex between 4-12 years old undergoing tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy. We found in this systematic review that tranexamic acid is significant in decreasing the amount of blood loss and decreasing the incidence of post tonsillectomy and /or adenoidectomy hemorrhage.