Abstract

Objective: To compare blood loss during surgery, edema, and ecchymosis after surgery in patients administered with tranexamic acid (TXA) and normal saline undergoing primary elective rhinoplasty.
Methodology: Sixty-eight patients were included in this randomized control trial (RCT) study presented for rhinoplasty. Thirty-four patients received TXA 20 ml preoperatively while thirty-four received 0.9% normal saline. Outcomes between both groups were assessed in terms of surgery duration, intraoperative bleeding, edema, and ecchymosis between both groups.
Results: All the patients completed the study. The mean age in group A was 33.59±9.25 years while 31.21±9.22 years in group B. The duration of surgery in group A turned out to be 103.38±10.37 mins while in group B it was 120±11.31 mins with notably reduced duration of surgery in group B (P = 0.0001). Group A showed notably lower intraoperative blood loss 148.88±30.75 ml as compared to the placebo group which received normal saline 180.44±24.75 ml (P = 0.0001). The incidence of postoperative edema and ecchymosis compared to the placebo group is significantly lower.
Conclusion: Preoperative tranexamic acid lowers postoperative side effects such as edema and ecchymosis and greatly reduces blood loss in patients undergoing rhinoplasty.

Key words: Rhinoplasty, Edema, Blood loss, Tranexamic acid, Ecchymosis