Blood Loss as a Function of Body Surface Area Redefining Parameters of Obstetric Blood Loss

Abstract

(Obstet Gynecol. 2016;128:1274–1280)

Postpartum hemorrhage is often defined by a static, standard volume (500 mL) and may not reflect the true physiological effect of blood loss in women with varying body dimensions. The volume of blood loss seen at the time of delivery as a proportion of a woman’s total blood volume may be a more appropriate measure. In the present study, authors identified average estimated blood loss in vaginal and cesarean deliveries in a cohort of women based on body surface area and compared this with the standard definition.