Experience of four UK comprehensive care centres using FEIBA® for surgeries in patients with inhibitors

Increasing evidence indicates that factor VIII (FVIII) inhibitor bypassing agents (FEIBA (R) and NovoSeven (R)) can provide effective peri-operative haemostasis in haemophilia patients with high-responding inhibitors. We report the collected experience of all major and minor surgeries, conducted between December 1998 and September 2008, at four UK haemophilia Comprehensive Care Centres with FEIBA (R) as the first-line bypassing agent in patients with inhibitors. A total of 26 surgical procedures were performed in 18 patients of ages 34-83 years including five patients with acquired FVIII inhibitors. A single pre-operative infusion of FEIBA was followed by 6-12 h interval dosing for major surgeries at the discretion of the physician to approximate a maximum of 200 U kg(-1) - day(-1), with tapering when postoperative haemostasis and wound healing permitted. Haemostatic outcomes were retrospectively reviewed against European consensus thresholds for blood loss and duration of treatment compared with expectations for equivalent procedures in non-inhibitor patients. Peri-operative haemostatic outcome with FEIBA was rated excellent or good in 78% of 18 major surgeries in 12 patients, including 11 major orthopaedic procedures. Haemostatic outcome was rated excellent in all seven procedures in five patients with acquired FVIII inhibitors and in all eight minor surgical procedures in six patients. FEIBA was well tolerated with no intra-operative haemostatic complications. A single, transient postoperative thrombotic adverse event occurred in a patient with cerebrovascular disease. This case series adds significantly to existing evidence that FEIBA can provide adequate, well-tolerated, peri-operative haemostatic cover for a wide variety of major and minor surgical procedures.