Perioperative medicine & outcomes
Differential associations between preoperative anaemia and postoperative outcomes in women and men undergoing surgery✰
Authors' conclusion
Preoperative anaemia is associated with adverse outcomes in both women and men, though the associations with acute kidney injury, ischaemic events and surgical site infection are stronger in women.
Study context
- Population
- Adults undergoing surgery requiring postoperative hospitalisation at a large US academic medical centre, 2012–2022procedures (49.4% among women)
- Participants
- 228,341 adults
- Exposure
- Preoperative anaemia severity vs no anaemia, in women and men
- Outcome
- Postoperative AKI
Methodological detailssingle-centre, multivariable regression, gender interaction analysis
- Single-centre
- Multivariable regression
- Gender interaction analysis
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Postoperative AKI by gender
Adjusted odds ratio (95% CI)
Women, severe anaemia vs Women, no anaemia
2.91(2.47–3.44)
Men, severe anaemia vs Men, no anaemia
1.43(1.22–1.68)
- Acute kidney injury (AKI) overall
- 13.2%
- AKI in women
- 7.6%
- AKI in men
- 18.8%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | aOR (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|
| Ischaemic events by genderWomen, severe anaemia vs Women, no anaemia | 2.48 (2.14–2.88) | |
| Ischaemic events by genderMen, severe anaemia vs Men, no anaemia | 1.62 (1.40–1.86) | |
| Surgical site infection by genderWomen, severe anaemia vs Women, no anaemia | 4.78 (3.94–5.80) | |
| Surgical site infection by genderMen, severe anaemia vs Men, no anaemia | 2.62 (2.13–3.23) | |
| 0.20.5125Adjusted odds ratio (log scale) |
- Ischaemic events by gender: interaction P<0.001
- Surgical site infection by gender: interaction P<0.001
Preoperative anaemia prevalence
- Overall
- 70 968 (31.1%)
- Women
- 30.8%
- Men
- 31.4%
Original publication
Differential associations between preoperative anaemia and postoperative outcomes in women and men undergoing surgery✰. Br J Anaesth. Published 10 June 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →