Does red blood cell transfusion affect clinical outcomes in critically ill patients? A report from a large teaching hospital in south Iran

BACKGROUND: Despite the beneficial effects, RBC transfusion can be associated with infectious and non-infectious complications in critically ill patients.
OBJECTIVES: Investigate current RBC transfusion practices and their effect on the clinical outcomes of patients in intensive care units (ICUs).
DESIGN: Retrospective observational study SETTING: Three mixed medical-surgical adult ICUs of a large academic
tertiary hospital
PATIENTS AND METHODS: From March 2018 to February 2020, all adult patients admitted to medical or surgical ICU. Patients who received one or more RBC transfusions during the first month of ICU admission were included in the “transfusion” group, while the remaining patients were assigned to the “non-transfusion” group.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Mortality and length of ICU and hospital stay.
SAMPLE SIZE: 2159 patients
RESULTS: Of 594 patients who recieved transfusions, 27% of patients received red blood cell (RBC) products. The mean pre-transfusion hemoglobin (Hb) level was 8.05 (1.46) g/dL. Th