Routine surgeries may be delayed due to blood shortages –

Experts warn that routine surgeries may be delayed due to lack of blood. Stocks are at about half normal levels and hospitals were told they were ready to take immediate action if the situation worsened, possibly earlier this month.

This includes reducing the number of non-emergency elective surgeries such as joint replacements that require an adequate blood supply if a patient is bleeding heavily.

There are currently about 6.5 million patients on the waiting list for this type of surgery, and around 300,000 are waiting for at least a year.

“The shortage means hospitals have no choice but to delay procedures because it is not safe to continue,” said Professor Ian Roberts, a leading UK blood loss specialist working at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

In July, Health Secretary Steve Barclay issued an urgent call for blood donations, warning that supplies were at half normal levels, but insisting there was still “adequate supply”.

In July, Steve Barclay, the new health secretary pictured, urged people to donate blood to replenish supplies. Otherwise, NHS leaders will have to implement a contingency plan for blood deficiency.

That same month, however, NHS Blood And Transplant sent a letter to England’s hematology departments that painted a more bleak picture. The correspondence, seen by The Mail on Sunday, cited “concerns about adequate supply in the coming weeks” and urged staff to “be prepared to implement a contingency plan for blood shortages”.

Another letter, sent on 30 August, said blood levels were still “lower than we would like”, but did not specify a timeline for crisis measures.

Additional emails between NHS England and NHS Blood And Transplant say it is “expected” that blood will be available from elective surgeries by the end of this month.

The NHS has a formal traffic light system to deal with low blood levels. The UK is currently in a ‘pre-amber’ state, which means there is enough blood to meet demand. NHS staff are advised to watch out for wasted materials and try to contain possibly depleted blood types. The next phase is amber, which hospitals need to “reduce and prioritize” their blood use.

But experts say an important tool that could help keep procedures going is being overlooked in NHS hospitals. A drug called tranexamic acid reduces major blood loss by a quarter when given before surgery. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) recommends it be given to all patients undergoing major surgery, but doctors do not recommend it.

Last year, an audit of 152 NHS hospitals found that a third of eligible patients were not offered £2 per dose of the drug. A report to be published tomorrow in the British Journal of Anesthesia suggests that administering the vaccine to all surgical patients in the hospital could prevent 15,000 major bleedings per year.

“It makes perfect sense for doctors and patients,” said Professor Roberts, one of the report’s authors. “It’s a low-cost, low-risk surgery that will save tens of thousands of blood and lives.”

Currently, around 13,000 Brits die each year from heavy bleeding during surgery. Professor Roberts added: “Not only do we need more doctors to recommend tranexamic acid, we also want every patient who has surgery to know that they can and should request it.”

It is injected into the thigh muscle or a vein in the arm and inhibits the release of compounds that prevent blood from clotting. The drug has long been used to treat severe bleeding in trafficked persons and women with extremely heavy menstrual periods. Studies also show that it is very effective at preventing blood loss before wounds develop.

In a letter sent last week, NHS Blood And Transplant urged consultants to use tranexamic acid “before major surgery” to help conserve blood supplies. However, Prof. Roberts says “outdated” beliefs about the drug’s safety may discourage some doctors from using the drug.

Previous studies have associated tranexamic acid with a slightly increased risk of life-threatening blood clots in the days following treatment. However, recent studies involving more than 40,000 patients have shown that these fears are unfounded. Other major studies have shown that giving patients an injection 20 minutes before usual surgery, including joint surgery, can reduce the risk of needing a blood transfusion by a third without increasing the risk of blood clots.

prof. “Patients should at least have a choice,” says Roberts. ‘Blood transfusions can be traumatic for a patient, often with a long recovery time and a few extra nights in the hospital. “Too many doctors are unaware of the latest evidence showing how safe and effective this drug is.”

Last year, The Mail on Sunday revealed alarming data showing that only five percent of accident victims who could benefit from tranexamic acid received it from paramedics.

prof. “Doctors often learn about drugs through drug marketing campaigns, but nobody talks about it because it’s an old and cheap drug,” says Roberts. “NHS hospitals will have to use this if they want a simple solution to these serious shortcomings.”

NHS Blood And Transplant said the blood supply was adequate for “current clinical need”, adding: “The goal now is to prevent blood supply from falling further as supplies reach the orange stage. [hospitals] can delay transactions.

• Visit blood.nl to sign up to be a donor and find your local blood donation clinic.