Effects of deamino-8-D-arginin vasopressin on blood loss and coagulation factors in scoliosis surgery. A double-blind randomized clinical trial

What Was Tested

Researchers studied Vasopressin in this randomized controlled trial publication.

Because of major drawbacks of homologous blood transfusion, many alternative methods have been used to counter the blood loss.

Only a few studies exist, with controversial results, on the use of deamino-8-D-arginin vasopressin.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 35 patients taking part.

The age groups tagged for this paper are teenagers, both men and women.

The study population included 40 operations on 35 consecutive patients undergoing reconstructive surgery for either idiopathic (n = 26) or congenital (n = 9) scoliosis.

How the Study Was Run

The design is described as randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled.

The patients were allocated by chance, so the Vasopressin group and the comparison group should start out alike.

As a double-blind Vasopressin study, the assignments were hidden from both participants and investigators until the end.

Some patients received a placebo instead of Vasopressin, giving a reference point.

Parameters of blood loss, serum levels of blood coagulation factors at different time intervals, and urinary output were measured.

What Was Measured

Topics PubMed links to this paper include Blood Coagulation Factors, Blood Loss, Surgical, Deamino Arginine Vasopressin, Diuresis, Hemostatics, Scoliosis and Spinal Fusion.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Vasopressin in 35 patients.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

Results are reported in around 5 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 1999 (Spine), a journal based in United States.

More context: the Vasopressin compound page, all human trials.