Platelet Gel in Cardiac Surgery—effects on Wound Healing (The ‘Pics’ Study)

The use of autologous platelet gel (APG) for high-risk patients in cardiac surgery — is it beneficial?

“…Almost all data, including pain sensation and blood loss, were comparable throughout the entire patient cohort so that the relatively small sample size may contribute to the limitation of the study. However, since other multicenter, prospective investigations, such as the PICS study 16 could also demonstrate a similar lack of efficacy, which is in contrast to other retrospective studies from the literature, 13 the current recommendation for the use of APG should be reserved for surgical procedures with a low-risk profile for wound complications, especially in critical body areas, such as represented by the sternal bone. The best prevention remains, in our opinion, an optimized preparation for the individual patient who is scheduled to cardiac surgery with a lowering of the body weight, stopping smoking and improving the diabetes, where possible, prior to surgery.…”