Influence of Clinical Factors Alone on the Ratings
| Clinical factor | Mean score* | Difference† | p value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Erythropoietin alone‡ | |||
| Expected blood loss,§ high/low | 8.3/2.4 | 5.9 | < 0.0001 |
| Hemoglobin,¶ low/high | 7.9/3.5 | 4.4 | < 0.0001 |
| History of transfusion incompatibility, yes/no | 5.9/5.5 | 0.4 | 0.03 |
| Patient anxiety, severe/mild or none | 5.9/5.5 | 0.4 | 0.045 |
| Cardiovascular/cardiopulmonary disease, present/absent | 5.8/5.6 | 0.2 | 0.21 |
| Age, > 70/18–70 yr | 5.8/5.5 | 0.3 | 0.14 |
| Erythropoietin and PAD‡ | |||
| Expected blood loss,§ high/low | 8.8/5.2 | 3.6 | < 0.0001 |
| Hemoglobin,¶ low/high | 8.4/5.4 | 3.0 | < 0.0001 |
| Patient anxiety, severe/mild or none | 7.4/7.0 | 0.4 | 0.15 |
| Cardiovascular/cardiopulmonary disease, present/absent | 7.4/7.1 | 0.3 | 0.29 |
| Age, > 70/18–70 yr | 7.27/7.22 | 0.05 | 0.86 |
↵* The numbers in this column represent the mean of all ratings for the indications with that value (e.g., the mean of all ratings for high expected blood loss was 8.3).
↵† A positive number means that the panel rated the first scenario more appropriate than the second (e.g., high expected blood loss was more appropriate than low expected blood loss by 5.9 points on a 9-point scale).
↵‡ Overall mean rating was 5.7.
↵§ Erythropoietin alone: 3+ units expected packed red blood cell loss v. 0 units; erythropoietin and PAD: 5+ units expected PAD v. 1–2 units
↵¶ Erythropoietin alone: 80–100 g/L v. > 130 g/L; erythropoietin and PAD 110–130 g/L v. > 130 g/L