Original paper Surgery in Jehovah’s Witnesses – our experience

Introduction: Surgeons face a special challenge in treating Jehovah’s Witnesses who refuse blood transfusion. Aim: To present our surgical experience with this group of patients operated on in our department. Material and methods: A retrospective study of 16 unselected Jehovah’s Witnesses patients was conducted between Oc-tober 2004 and February 2012. We analysed gender, age, haemogram before and after surgery, types of surgery, postoperative complications and the need for blood transfusion, and/or other drugs stimulating erythrogenesis