Volume 29, Issue 4 , Pages 270-278, July 2008
Management of Jehovah's Witnesses in otolaryngology, head and neck surgery☆
Abstract
It is imperative that surgeons should have some knowledge and understanding of the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses to respect the patient's wishes and effectively minimize and manage blood loss. The objective of this review was to provide a management strategy for Jehovah's Witness patients undergoing otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, because there is paucity of information regarding this within our literature. A systematic review of medical literature was conducted. Articles were identified using MEDLINE (1966-2007). The search strategy used Medical Subject Heading terms Jehovah's Witnesses, Beliefs, Ethical and Legal issues, Blood transfusion alternatives, ENT, Head and Neck surgery in Jehovah' witnesses. There is a broad range of nonblood surgical management strategies available in other specialities, making major surgery possible within this population. This review suggests recommendations in elective surgery, trauma, and emergencies.
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☆ This review was presented at the Sylvester O'Halloran Surgical Scientific Meeting—Head and Neck section on March 4, 2006.
PII: S0196-0709(07)00117-2
doi:10.1016/j.amjoto.2007.08.006
© 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Volume 29, Issue 4 , Pages 270-278, July 2008
